Magic Never Dies
by ctc1000
Summary: Forces, mighty and ancient, awaken and Harry is caught up in an age old conflict greater than mere mortal wizards. A story of a hero who struggles to stay true to himself despite great adversity. Support from familiar faces. The world will never be the same.
1. The Storm Breaks

**The Storm Breaks**

The headmaster banished the interlopers from his office. Mundungus's dereliction of duty aside, Albus Dumbledore knew the Order of the Phoenix could be relied on for simple tasks but they were foot soldiers, not generals. They were not prepared for the horrors of war, and not capable of the consequential decisions that needed to be made. For the defeat of a Dark Lord required more than heroics, bravery, or spell battles. The long war against Grindelwald had taught Dumbledore well. Prophecy, deception, and intricate planning were necessary for victory and the battle field could change in a moment. Albus summoned the small spun-glass ball mounted on the coils of a dragon out of the drawer of his massive oak desk.

The swirling blue grey mist parted to show Trelawney's third and most recent vision. After Voldemort's resurrection at the Little Hangleton Graveyard, Dumbledore pestered the Divination teacher for a third prophecy. The scandalised witch had declared vehemently that the Inner Eye did not see on command, but he wore her down slowly and surely. Gifts of cooking sherry mixed with compulsions spells cast by the Elder Wand made Sybill more amenable to reason. She had even taken with only mild reluctance a potion brewed from wormwood and mugwort that enhanced psychic powers. Severus assured him that these herbs had been burnt for the hallucinations of the Eleusinian Mysteries, the most famous of the ancient Mediterranean cults.

The prophecy came out in fits and bursts, the visions seemingly driving her into a frothing frenzy. Trelawney lost her affected air of eccentric mysticism and her breathy ethereal tone had been replaced by barely intelligible screeching. Her pupils dilated, the muscles in her upper body spasmed and her flushed face dripped sweat as an apocalyptic furor seized her. The batty witch turned hysterical, murmuring about witches ancient and new, a mighty dragon teetering between good and evil, and blood - blood that would remake the world. It was a remarkable theatrical performance, and Dumbledore thought she deserved a raise. At last, the prophecy ball captured the true prediction.

_A wizard king will return _

_And his followers will burn _

_The world with magic too great _

_If the sacrifice be late._

Sybill passed out after this, convulsing on the floor. Dumbledore stupefied her to prevent anything foolish, like swallowing her tongue and requiring the nurse's aid. That would be rather bothersome.

At first, Dumbledore thought the prophecy was nothing new. Voldemort returned from the dead in June and his Death Eaters intended to make him king, burning the world. Harry Potter would have to sacrifice himself so that Voldemort would turn mortal and be defeated. Dumbledore felt sorry for the lad, for Harry was like a grandson to him. He never wondered that few grandfathers schemed for their grandsons to die at the most opportune moment.

But a terrible thought occurred to the Headmaster. If the sacrifice was late and Harry survived - what if the boy was the Wizard King? Dumbledore had banished Harry from the magical world - for the Greater Good, of course - and despite the attempts to isolate Harry with the Dursleys and the Weasleys, the boy could easily gather followers. If Harry defeated Voldemort, would he look for revenge against the pureblood elite? Would he turn Dark, and raise an army of half bloods and muggleborns to destroy the fragile balance that Dumbledore had painstakingly nurtured to protect the magical world?

Dumbledore had done his best to contain the young wizard. He had limited his knowledge of the magical world to trivialities like racing brooms and quidditch. He had blocked Potter from serious classes like runes or arithmancy. In the summers, the Dursleys locked up his magical books and Dumbledore had sealed away the tomes and grimoires at 12 Grimmauld Place, ordering Molly Weasley to keep the children, even Hermione Granger, from the library. Through years of isolation and artful manipulation, Dumbledore had made Harry so reliant on the crumbs of freedom and praise that the boy would whinge and moan whenever there was any conflict with "friends" or other students, a welcome distraction from learning.

In spite of his efforts, Harry had grown into a capable wizard, able to fight off dementors and kill a basilisk. With the new prophecy, Dumbledore would have to make sure Harry was kept down. It would be harder to do so at 12 Grimmauld Place. After the fiasco of the dementor trial, Harry had turned exceedingly cynical, and defiant of adult authority. Molly reported that Harry was still feuding with his best mates, angry that they abandoned him this summer on Dumbledore's firm orders. Luckily, there was an elegant solution, one that could not be traced back to him. Dolores Umbridge. She would be the Defense Against Dark Arts teacher this year, and Dumbledore knew that the toad like witch would enjoy degrading rebellious children. Umbridge would force Harry to crawl back to the headmaster for protection.

Dumbledore had seen two dark lords rise in his life - Grindelwald in his youth and Voldemort as a unnaturally gifted student. He would not let Harry Potter be the third. Harry had as much raw power as the first two, but Albus had suppressed his development so cleverly that the boy had no idea. It was better that way. Harry would have to sacrifice himself to defeat Voldemort. Harry would be happier as a normal teenage wizard with hormonal crushes and feuding houses than living under the shadow of his heroic destiny.

Dumbledore could not know the plot unfolding that would shatter these careful machinations. Even the best laid schemes of men could go askew. And after a deep slumber, forces greater than any Supreme Mugwump or Chief Warlock were awakening.

* * *

Draco Malfoy woke up that morning, fresh and eager. Even the news yesterday of Harry Potter's lucky escape for violating the Statute of Secrecy did not ruin his mood. If he had his say, Potter should be sent to Azkaban for simply being the son of a filthy muggle born witch and not respecting his betters. But Draco was feeling merciful. Today, his father would bring him to the fair.

The fair happened every nine years in a town, north of York but south of Scotland. The name of the town had been lost over the centuries but on that day, all sorts of magic could be purchased, wonders from all over the world, cages that enslaved veela, lamps that summoned genies, even a shirt stained with poisoned blood. The first Malfoy had found a scale enchanted to cheat his customers, forming the basis of the family fortune.

Draco Malfoy called for a house elf to wash his face and polish his nails. He did not trust the clumsy creature to pluck his perfect eyebrows. After Draco finished brushing his blonde hair and primping his pale features in the mirror, Draco put on his very best shirt, and his very best robes, completing the ensemble with a heavy necklace, an emerald ring, and a silver brooch with the Malfoy crest - serpentine creatures entwined about a green and black shield with a large letter M. The words underneath inscribed on a silver banner, _Sanctimonia Vincet Semper_, could be seen faintly. Purity will always conquer.

Draco stepped down to the drawing room to take the portkey with his father. Lucius Abraxus Malfoy, normally dressed in the most expensive outfits Twilfitts and Tattings offered, wore a nondescript black cloak over a plain shirt and trousers. Instead of an ebony and silver cane topped with a hissing snake, he leaned on a rough oak staff. Draco was aghast at his father's appearance. He looked more like a Weasley or Hagrid than the might Lord Malfoy.

"What are you wearing?" cried both Malfoys.

Lucius gained his composure first. "Draco, this fair is a great secret, and unknown even to other wizards of the Sacred Twenty Eight. We must dress plainly, with no hint of our identities. No one there can know who you are."

"But, Father…." Draco whined.

"No buts. Change into plain clothes - not even a wizard's robe. Give no hints that you know magic and do not under any circumstance, cast a spell at the fair. Do not eat any food, drink any water, sip any wine."

"Why do we need to hide from these muggles?" Draco complained.

"They are not muggles. They are not wizards either. They are the fey and they were in England in the first age of the world. Their powers are great but limited and they have been drowsing in torpor for centuries. You do not want to wake them up." Lucius said.

Draco grumbled as he changed. His father was wrong because nothing could be more powerful than wizards. After all, they were taught at Hogwarts to cast spells with their wands, not merely craft trinkets and nicknacks with dubious value. Draco's hopes of finding a curio to curse Potter faded. He doubted the fair would be any better than Borgin and Burkes.

* * *

Draco wrinkled his nose in disgust. The market bustled, filled with colorful tents and strange looking men and women hawking their wares loudly to anyone who approached. The crowd included dozens of foreigners without the decency to wear proper British clothes. There were swarthy men in white jellabas with red hats with blue tassels straight out of a Middle East bazaar. There were pale Asians in robes so colorful and festooned with dragons and clouds that even Dumbledore would have thought it too much. There were even dark skinned men wearing cloaks of bright bird feathers. Draco thought sourly that no one would have even noticed his acromantula robe among this hideous riot of colors.

Draco was hungry and annoyed. His father was busy bargaining for a dessicated human heart. According to the seller, when a magical heart was extricated willingly from your body, it grew shrivelled, shrunken, and strangely hairy. Draco marvelled at the incredible stupidity of the warlock who tore out his own heart. He understand cutting out the heart to become immortal. Attempting to put a blackened hairy heart back into your chest to impress a witch? That was so idiotic that he could not even imagine Ron Weasley doing that.

Draco followed the succulent smell of roasting meat. There were stalls at the fair set up to serve those who spurned faerie fare. A dark complexioned man was tending to a giant inverted cone of brownish meat, somehow rotating slowly over a flame.

"Oi Mate, would you like a kebab?" the man said, waving a long thin knife.

"A kebab? What's that?" Draco asked, wondering what dreck muggles really ate.

"Lamb, turkey and chicken all prepared with special spices."

"I don't eat any foreign food." Draco sniffed.

"Oi! Kebabs are the most popular food in London." the man replied. "Next to chicken tikka."

Draco sighed. "Well in that case, I will have one." He plunked down a few copper coins and received a hot pita sandwich, dripping with meat juices and sauce. Draco sat down to eat on a plain wooden bench, as a wandering troubadour sang epics of knights and maidens. A crowd began to gather, calling for more ballads of Sir Yvain and Sir Lancelot.

Draco snorted in disgust at the glorification of mere muggles, swinging their silly swords and maces about. "Why don't you sing about some real heroes?" Draco said, as he carelessly tossed a few silver stags to the performer.

The bard smiled broadly. "And what does my lord request? The tale of Sir Gareth? Or Sir Pellinore and the Questing Beast? Or does he wish to hear The Perfect Knight - Sir Galahad?"

"Who cares about knights? Sing about the true king - Merlin! Without Merlin, Arthur was just a stupid pig boy." Draco said, the sneer on his face mirrored in his voice.

The crowd murmured angrily and the bard stopped, cocking his head. "I see, you are one of them. We don't want your kind around here."

Draco reached but then realized he could not use his wand. He stood and huffed off. As he walked away from the glares, he barely noticed the tents shrinking in numbers and the field growing wilder. At a dead end, there was one last tent, and the semi circle of trees backed away from the stall, as if paying respect or in abject fear.

* * *

An old crone sat there, her toothless grin matched by her wrinkled face and iron grey hair. Her dress might once have been a dark emerald green but now was faded and patched. She hunched over a crowded knotty pine table, her young limber hands an odd contrast to her advanced age. Draco did not notice the hands nor the other items for sale - a curved double edged knife with a black handle, a dark candle with an even darker wick, a golden sickle, and a staff with two entwined serpents, topped by white wings. Draco's attentions were on the skull.

Resting next to the witch's busy hands was a grinning white skull. The forehead was broad well shaped, the sign of a deep thinker. The eyes were two enormous multi-faceted emeralds, the size of a bird's egg. There were twelve dazzling teeth - all diamonds, well cut and glittering even in the dim light. The sinister skull seemed to smirk at Draco and he had a great desire to murder the witch and steal it away. A treasure like this should not belong to this ancient crone. His hands reached out, only to pull back from a excruciatingly painful hex.

"Naughty, naughty, naughty." The witch cackled at the skull. Draco sucked at his swelling knuckles, and she turned her eyes to the young wizard.

"How did you get the skull?" Draco challenged her.

"He cheated me once. And for that, I destroyed his magic." the witch smiled. "His suffering will last a long time. If you touch him, so will yours." The witch vanished the grinning skull, and Draco realized that she did so, silently and without a wand. Although, it could simply be a mountebank's trick. "Come closer, boy. You wouldn't be afraid of a witch, would you? What do you wish for - a love potion to ensnare a young girl or boy? A draught to make you stronger?"

Draco mustered his courage. "I want a curse to hurt my enemy. To make him feel pain and misery. I want him to suffer."

The witch cackled. "Very well. Old Morgaine can do that for a price. And what is his name?"

"Harr…." Draco stopped. "Can't you just give me a curse without a name?"

The witch pointed her bony finger at Draco. "This magic needs a name. Without a name, the hex may affect you. Or perhaps your family? Those who seek to curse heroes must be careful the curse does not rebound on them."

"I can't name him." Draco said, frustrated.

"Then what do you truly want? What do you desire?" Draco found himself unable to tear himself away from her glowing eyes. They stabbed deep into his soul.

"I want wizards to stop hiding from muggles. We are superior to these filthy muggles. Magic should dominate the world - not hide in the shadows. Wizards should assume their rightful positions, in the seats of power, and the mightiest wizard rule as king." Draco blurted out.

"So you want magic to return. To be seen. To be known." The witch said. Draco nodded his head cautiously, trying to force himself to keep silent. He knew that his occlumency shields were useless and he dreaded spilling more secrets to this witch.

With her right hand, the crone levitated a glass vial filled with a black liquid and stoppered with a crystal cork carved in the shape of a skull. "Use this when the time is right, on the day of a full moon." Pale rays of light reflected off the cork, and Draco thought the skull gave him a sinister reddish wink. "This was brewed from a tree that was old when England was young. It can be opened only once and then thrown on your enemy. And it will bring him great suffering - so much that he will wish to die."

With both hands, Draco grabbed greedily at the bottle. He had eyes only for the potion, and he gave no thoughts to why the witch would give him such potent magic. The memory of the crone began to fade from his mind like light from the setting sun.

The witch continued. "There is a price to be paid and the price is this. You will tell no one how and where you acquired this curse. No spell or serum will open your lips, Draco Malfoy. You will have no memory of me - not even if the Queen of Air and Darkness herself should ask. In return, I grant your heart's desire, and all the pleasure and regret it will bring."

Draco had stopped listening long ago. He was mesmerized by the vial, pulsing with eldritch dark magic. He had found something that would harm Potter. When the time came, on the day of a full moon, the Boy Who Lived would suffer. When Draco woke from his stupor, night had fallen and he rushed to find his father. He walked away, wondering why he was in a deserted glade.

A minute later, a beautiful witch appeared from the shadows wearing a revealing emerald dress. Dark wild hair with a hint of auburn framed her seductive pale face and her sharp green eyes. Morgana Le Fay vanished all traces of her presence at the fair - the tent, the table, the magical items, even the insolent skull. Only one thing remained - the potion in Draco Malfoy's pocket. And when he used it, nothing would stop the coming storm.

* * *

**October 3 1995**

Draco had waited a long time for this moment. The first full moon fell on the Wednesday of the week they returned to Hogwarts. The new class schedule was hectic still and despite his eagerness to use the potion, he had to choose the right time - one where Potter would be unable to fight back. In the meantime, Draco kept busy spreading rumors to gullible Hufflepuffs that Potter murdered Cedric Diggory to win the Tournament.

It was the last class of the week, a double Defense Against Dark Arts with the Gryffindors on Friday afternoon. Seamus Finnegan droned on, reading a passage on how to respond non offensively to attacks from **Defensive Magical Theory**. Draco knew from his father that Minister Fudge installed Umbridge to spy on Dumbledore. The witch could care less about teaching anything useful, and the only grade that mattered in Fifth Year were the OWLs. The class was an utter waste of time which made it perfect for Draco.

Umbridge forced students to read every word of the Wilbert Slinkhard book out loud. Even after four weeks, the Fifth Years were only on Chapter 3. There were thirty two chapters left. The book was so dull that even that know-it-all bookworm Granger hated it. The boring and repetitive contents lulled the class to sleep. Second, Umbridge despised the Gryffindors and kept her beady eyes on them. The only student she disliked more than Granger was Potter. That would allow him to sneak behind his target. And finally, no matter the curse, the Gryffindors would be unable to retaliate. They had not cast a single spell in class the entire month, and Umbridge would not let the Gryffindors do anything to the son of Fudge's senior advisor.

Draco crept up out of his desk. Finnegan continued to read. "When faced with danger, the right response is to find an auror. If no auror can be found, sending a message by owl to alert the aurors is the next best alternative." Draco unstoppered his vial and threw the potion at Potter.

* * *

The potion swelled and expanded as it left the container. In seconds, squirming ebony tendrils reached Harry and wrapped around his body, oozing over his robes. Potter jerked out of his seat and reached for his wand. The black spread down his robes, onto his arms, and up his hands. Harry's wand clattered out of his reach and the black liquid began to shimmer, burning with an eldritch light. Harry fell to the ground, everything except his head obscured by the darkness. Then he started to scream, and the class broke out of their shock.

"Mr. Potter. You are disturbing the class. Twenty points from Gryffindor and detention with me." Dolores Umbridge yelled.

"Oi. Malfoy cursed him." Ron Weasley yelled, pointing at the retreating Slytherin.

"Mr. Weasley, I don't see your hand raised. Another ten points from Gryffindor." Umbridge said. Even the Slytherins looked incredulous at the toad's priorities.

Hermione Granger rushed forward and took out her wand. She quickly cast a **Revelio**. The charm hit the black ooze and dissipated. Perplexed, Hermione cast more spells but the magic faded and registered no results.

"What are you doing, Miss. Granger?" Umbridge screeched. "Slinkhard clearly says you should wait for an auror."

Harry passed out, but was still twitching in pain. His face was deathly pale and the only thing that wasn't coated in black. Hermione reached her left hand to his face. "He's burning up." she said.

"No doubt he is being punished for his filthy lies against the Ministry. Either that, it is a silly prank to disrupt my teaching."

"We have to notify the Headmaster." Hermione said.

"This is my class, and as a senior representative of the Ministry and Hogwarts, we will do nothing. No doubt, Mr. Potter is acting out." Umbridge said.

* * *

In the background, Ron Weasley and a few other Gryffindors confronted Draco Malfoy and his lackeys. No wands had been pointed but the situation was tense. Luckily, Hermione took charge. "Ron, this is not the time to fight. We have to help Harry. We need to get him to Nurse Pomfrey."

Hermione cast a** Mobilicorpus**, followed by a** Locomotor**. Neither spell worked, simply disappearing into the black ooze which continued to shimmer with some malevolent force. The other Gryffindors cast spells to transport Harry. The magic simply failed. Hermione gritted her teeth and rushed out of the room, despite Umbridge's threats of detention and punishment. She knocked on several of the other classroom doors. A minute later, Filius Flitwick entered. Umbridge snarled at seeing the half goblin but Flitwick ignored her, focusing on the ensorcelled Harry. Hermione filled him quickly on what happened, and the Charms professor cast an **Accio** on the potion bottle. He inspected it quickly before casting an advanced detection charm at Harry. The ebony tentacles blocked the ray, seemingly protecting Harry from all magic.

"I have never seen something like this. The magic of the potion is somehow binding with Mister Potter. Who brought this potion to class?" Flitwick squeaked.

"It was that filthy snake Malfoy." Ron said.

"Mr. Malfoy, where did you get this potion? This must be a Class D restricted object. It reeks of powerful magic, the likes I have never seen." Flitwick said.

"Don't answer that, Mr. Malfoy. You should only respond in the presence of your legal experts." Umbridge simpered.

Draco's mind reeled. He had no idea where he had acquired the curse, only that it would make Potter suffer.

Flitwick send an eagle patronus to Dumbledore. More teachers had poured in, and Hermione made way for Pomona Sprout and Septima Vector. When told of the failure of the **Mobilicorpus**, the two witches created a magical stretcher. The black tentacles felt warm and viscous to Hermione's touch but did not resist being placed on the gurney.

* * *

Dumbledore and McGonagall were now in the room, followed by Severus Snape. The rest of the teachers and students fell silent at the grim looks on those three teachers. McGonagall and Snape both cast detection spells which failed like the rest.

"Who did this?" Dumbledore asked. Umbridge was about to object but even she faltered when faced with the angry headmaster. Hermione pointed at Malfoy.

"What was in the vial?" the headmaster asked. Draco opened his mouth but nothing came out. He drew a complete blank. Where had the potion come from? Had he purchased it or was it given to him? For once in his life, Draco was frightened of what he had done.

"Headmaster, Draco is confunded somehow. **Finite Incantum**." Snape said. The spell fizzled, a sign that there was no magic to be dispelled. Snape raised his eyebrows. "Mr. Malfoy, are you carrying any cursed objects - or did you drink something unknown?"

"OI! You are trying to get Draco out of trouble. He tried to kill Harry!" Ron said.

Dumbledore inspected the dark bindings around Harry. The shimmer had disappeared and the tentacles were being pulled back into Harry's body, dwindling in size. The tendrils lost their aggressiveness and seemed oddly content. Dumbledore cast spells into the black substance. Even the magic of the Elder Wand was effortlessly absorbed.

"Harry isn't dead." Dumbledore examined the glass vial and the crystal skull. "But there was some powerful magic stored in this bottle, and possibly quite dark."

Hermione gasped. The black ooze vanished, fading into his body. The traces were gone, only leaving an unconscious Harry on the ground. Hermione clutched at his hands which were still sticky and hot. Besides that**,** he seemed unharmed. Even his color had returned.

"Is he okay?" McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore cast one more spell which once again had no effect. "I fear something strange and terrible has happened." The normally calm Headmaster continued to cast detection spells. To his consternation, there was no magical trace of Harry Potter.

* * *

Hours later, Harry woke up in a dark room. He knew instantly that he was in the hospital wing, and wondered how he had gotten there. All he remembered was the burning and pain when the ebony tentacles reached him. He felt cold like he had lost feeling. He stared at his hands and legs, moving him gingerly. His body, while a bit stiff, worked but why then did he feel like he had lost something - like an arm or a leg?

Harry reached for the phoenix feather and holly wand. It felt lifeless to him, like any stick. Frowning, he attempted to channel his magic but nothing happened. He tried to remember all the spells he knew. **Stupefy**. **Accio**. **Wingardium Leviosa**. **Reparo**. **Flipendo**. **Protego**. **Incendio**. **Glacius**. **Lumos**. Nothing - there was no magic.

Harry took a deep breath. He thought of his mum and dad, a happy memory of him as a baby in their loving eyes. The patronus charm was supposed to be exceedingly difficult, beyond NEWT level, but Harry was a master of that spell. He could cast it even under duress, and had done twice already to save his life. He desperately needed it now. **Expecto Patronum**. No blinding, dazzling, silver stag emerged from his wand - not even a shapeless cloud of magic from his dead wand.

Then he knew. He gently placed his wand down, and both hands went to his face, in a futile attempt to hide his tears of misery and despair. Harry Potter had lost his magic.


	2. The Boy Who Lost

**The Boy Who Lost**

"Harry Potter must be expelled. The Ministry will not permit a student without magic at Hogwarts. It would undermine the entire foundation of the school." Dolores Umbridge insisted.

"It has only been one night. He might recover." McGonagall said half-heartedly.

"We have allowed squibs to work at Hogwarts before. Perhaps Harry can join Hagrid." Dumbledore said. McGonagall, Sprout and Flitwick grimaced at the suggestion while Snape could not help smirking.

"That is not possible, Headmaster. Even a squib has traces of magic. Harry Potter has absolutely none. Isn't that right, Pomfrey?" The gray haired nurse nodded, on the verge of bursting in tears. "He has lost all magic. And he cannot stay at Hogwarts." Umbridge stated emphatically.

Dumbledore sighed. He had underestimated Umbridge but in his defence, every Defense Against Dark Arts teacher in the last decade had either been phony or incompetent, or both. Umbridge was cruel, sadistic and more than capable of hurting anyone who challenged her. "Perhaps we can give him a few days before we return him to the muggle world." Dumbledore said. He needed that time to strengthen the monitoring charms and protections on 4 Privet Drive and to silence complaints from the Dursleys. Dumbledore knew that Harry must be under his control or the magical world would truly suffer under Voldemort.

'Return him? He should be obliviated before being sent back to the muggles. We can't have a non magical know about the school. Think of the safety of the children." Umbridge cried.

"**Obliviation**? You want to obliviate the Boy Who Lived, and the last Potter?" Flitwick squeaked.

"He is not a Potter any more. He should be erased off the family tree, like the filthy muggle vermin he is." Umbridge screeched. "No non magical should know anything about magic. Those are the rules, Headmaster - and they must be followed." The other teachers, including Snape, were united in their disgust with her horrid comments.

"Perhaps the goblins could help, Albus. They have records going back thousands of years. Maybe they can trace or identify the strange magic Draco used." Flitwick said.

Before Dumbledore could voice his objection to such a dangerous idea, Umbridge cut in, her voice returning smoothly back to a simpering tone. "Harry Potter is a non magical. By the 1762 treaty with the Wizengamot, no goblins can serve a muggle. He no longer has an account at Gringotts. Without a will, The Potter accounts and holdings belong to the Ministry."

Dumbledore was distinctly uncomfortable at any talk of the Potter will. "Sadly, Filius, the gobins will not be able to help. I will speak to Harry today about his future."

An ugly triumphant smile, as pink as her fuzzy cardigan dress, blossomed on Umbridge's face. "Well, Headmaster, I suppose you can have a day or so - before the Ministry will be forced to intervene."

* * *

Dumbledore shut the door and cast several privacy charms. He opened the Floo to his office, and a shabby middle aged brown haired man stumbled through, looking rather worse for wear. Dumbledore was surprised that Remus Lupin had heard about the incident so soon after the full moon. The mystery was solved when he saw the letter Lupin waved.

"Sirius contacted me by mirror in the middle of the night. He was woken up by an owl from Harry. What in Merlin's name happened?" the exhausted wizard asked, opening up a small silver mirror. In contrast to a bedraggled Remus Lupin, Sirius Black looked alert and angry.

"Draco Malfoy threw an unknown potion on Harry. Somehow, his magic has vanished, like it was totally absorbed. He doesn't even register on detection charms. He is not even a squib but a full muggle." The headmaster said.

A startled Lupin woke from his stupor. "But that is impossible. Magic can't be created or destroyed. It can only be transformed. That is a fundamental law - one never broken in the history of any magical society."

Sirius snorted. "More to the point, if Malfoy or the Death Eaters had access to this type of magic, they would have used it already. Snivelous would have tried it on James."

Dumbledore wanted to defend his minion, but the conversation was already turning down an unpleasant road. "Draco Malfoy has no idea where he got the potion. His memory is a complete blank. Professor Snape's legilimency failed to uncover anything, and we have no idea how his mind could be wiped so cleanly."

"Who cares if he can't remember!" Sirius roared. "The prick stole my godson's magic. Why isn't he being charged?"

Dumbledore grimaced. "We don't want anyone to know. It could cause panic among wizards - that magic could be easily stripped. Particularly if they think Voldemort can do so. Also we need to protect Harry. We don't want an investigation from the Wizengamot on what happened. He is a non magical with no rights. They could place him with a Death Eater family."

Remus Lupin scratched his head. "Headmaster, this news will leak out. I am shocked it hasn't yet. It was in a class of students, and the purebloods will tell their families. Stripping Harry Potter of his magic..." Remus struggled to even comprehend the enormity of such power.

"Dumbledore, you are the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. You can stall any investigation. When is Harry coming to 12 Grimmauld Place?" Sirius asked.

"I don't think that is such a good idea. Harry is going back to the Dursleys. It is best for him to be out of the magical world." Dumbledore said.

Even through the mirror, Dumbledore could feel the heat of the glare. "Bollocks. He is my godson. He should stay with me, not those despicable muggles." Sirius said.

"Black Manor is full of dark magic. Your entire house hates muggles. What if he trips a trap?" Dumbledore asked.

"A pox on my house. I will just take him and go to France. Or America. I owe that to James and Lily - not to see their child be abused by the Dursleys." Sirius spat out their name in disgust.

Dumbledore knew that losing control of Harry meant Voldemort's victory. **_The wizard king returns and the world burns._** He would have to stop this, even if it alienated Sirius. "I forbid you from doing this. Harry needs his mother's protection. The wards will protect him at Privet Drive."

"Headmaster - how do you know the wards still work? Harry has no magic. And the wards didn't protect him from the dementors. His address is known to the Death Eaters, thanks to the trial." Remus said.

"I will mobilize the Order of the Phoenix to make certain that Harry is protected." Dumbledore said solemnly.

"The same Order of the Phoenix that did so well against the dementor attack?" Sirius challenged. "What will be the excuse next time? Stolen Brooms? A goblin debt Dung has to pay by selling illegal potion ingredients? You didn't protect Harry against the Dursleys. And you didn't protect him at Hogwarts."

Dumbledore interrupted Sirius before he could continue his rant. He said in a voice that brooked no disagreement. "I am sorry, Sirius, but I am his magical guardian. He needs to be protected from the Ministry. Harry needs the safety provided by his mother's sacrifice."

* * *

Harry Potter sat on his hospital cot sifting through his few things he owned. He had been forced to ask Nurse Pomfrey to cast an **Alohomora** on his own storage chest. There was the Firebolt that Sirius had gave him, the Marauder's Map, his father's Invisibility Cloak, a dead phoenix feather wand, his spell books and school equipment, a pile of loose galleons, and a photo album. On the front, there was a picture of a giggling one year old with a brown haired man with glasses and a beautiful red haired witch. His father held him and kissed his wild dark hair while his mother held up his left hand to her lips. There were other photos in the book - his parents graduating Hogwarts, their marriage, his baby pictures. Harry had very little in this world, but this was his greatest treasure - the memories of his family.

A mournful hoot interrupted his thoughts. A tired snowy owl drooped down on his shoulder and gently patted his face. Harry felt sorry that Hedwig had been affected by the severing of their familiar link. Harry rubbed the owl's back and wings. "You are not a treasure - Hedwig - you are my friend." Harry took out the last of his Eeylops Owl Treats. He wasn't sure he could even go back to Diagon Alley to buy more. "Hed - when I am gone, stay with Hermione. She will take good care of you." The white owl hooted sadly and flew off.

Harry opened up the Marauder's Map. Strangely, the Map and the Cloak still worked for him, even though the wand and the broom were useless. There were two dots coming to him - Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. But they were coming not from the Great Hall or Gryffindor Tower. Harry's eyes narrowed. That route made sense only if they came from Dumbledore's office. Harry put away his belongings.

"Oi Mate! Feeling better?" Ron said.

Hermione rushed forward, her heavy school bag on her shoulder, even on Saturday morning. "I brought some notes for you, Harry - for Monday's transfiguration test. It is on the first five chapters of the **Intermediate Transfiguration** textbook and I made you a six page color coded study guide. If you have any questions..." Hermione rambled.

Harry glanced at the detailed diagram on how to turn owls into opera glasses. He doubted that Hedwig would enjoy such a transformation. "Thanks but I won't need them, Hermione."

"I am sure it is no big deal, mate. Magical exhaustion. Just like at the end of every year. In a few days, you will be right as rain." Ron said with a false heartiness.

"My magic is gone. My wand doesn't react at all to me." Harry said.

"Blimey!" Ron backed away, but Hermione stepped closer.

"Are you sure? What about the healers at St. Mungo's? Can they help?" Hermione asked.

"No magical hospital will treat a muggle." Harry said. "I have no magic anymore. I can't use my wand, cast a spell or fly a broom."

"But there is magic that can be done without wands. Brewing potions or carving runes….."

"What! You can't fly a broom." Ron said shocked.

Harry took out the Firebolt. "No, the charms feel completely dead to me. I can't even summon the broom up."

"But, Harry - what about quidditch. What about the Gryffindor team?" Ron said in a panicky tone.

"Ron, I think Harry has more important things than a silly inter-house game." Hermione said. Ron's face reddened as he readied his retort.

Harry decided he didn't need any more petty squabbling. "You didn't come to talk to me about quidditch."

"Headmaster Dumbledore wants to see you, Harry. He asked us to bring you to his office." Hermione said.

* * *

Harry nodded. He pocketed his wand out of habit, even though it was useful only as a stick. They walked out of the Nursing Wing, past a small excitable man wearing a large purple top hat and a petite black haired woman with flushed pink cheeks. Their looks of pity were almost as bad as the condescending stares of several Slytherins loitering in the hall. Harry realized he had seen the small wizard guarding 4 Privet Drive. He wondered if Hermione and Ron made the connection to the Order of the Phoenix. Ron's mind though was somewhere else entirely.

"Mate, have you told Angelina? About the broom?"

"Ron!" Hermione hissed.

Ron ignored Hermione. "Harry, the Gryffindors play the Slytherins in four weeks. If you can't fly, we need a new Seeker! We will need to hold tryouts - maybe even completely change strategy. We will need the Chasers to be in top form, and the new Seeker to play defensively, we will need a better Keeper…. "

Harry rolled his eyes. "Ron, I am not worried about the House Cup."

"But quidditch …Harry, if you can't use the Firebolt, can I borrow it? I want to try out for seeker."

"Sure, Ron. It is only a broom." Harry ignored the whoop of joy and the angry glare that Ron's celebration elicited from Hermione. He could care less and he knew his godfather would agree. It was a magical object, expensive for sure, but one he could no longer use. Harry kept his focus on the meeting with Dumbledore. Quidditch was the last thing on his mind.

* * *

The headmaster's eyes twinkled in his somber face as he welcomed Harry and his friends to the office. Harry sat stiffly, in the chair furthest away from Dumbledore. He kept his eyes fixed on a portrait behind the Headmaster.

"Ah, Harry, my boy. I hope you have recovered from your ordeal." Dumbledore began.

"Headmaster, I have lost my magic." Harry said. "You know that."

"Ah, yes. Harry, I am sorry for what you have suffered. If I could do anything to prevent it…"

Harry interrupted Dumbledore's soliloquy. "Is there any way to restore my magic? Rituals or artifacts? Blood magic? Do the professors have any ideas?"

Dumbledore reacted with shock and concern. "Researching rituals or ancient spells would be far too dangerous. We cannot risk you dabbling in the Dark Arts. Alas, Harry - nothing can be done. We must simply do our best to live with your disability." Dumbledore said.

"Why hasn't Malfoy been charged with a crime? He cursed me." Harry said.

"Ah, my boy. Draco was confunded - it is possible he may have been compelled to attack you."

"Draco has always hated me. He doesn't need to be bewitched to attack me. Every single year, he tries something. And this year, he actually succeeded." Harry said.

"Harry, you should not be motivated by revenge." the Headmaster said.

"Revenge? He cost me my magic. How is that not a crime?" Harry spat.

"We can not attract the attention of the Ministry or the Wizengamot now." Dumbledore said.

"So Draco is going to get away with this because his father is on the Wizengamot?" an outraged Hermione asked.

"Miss Granger - the magical world is in a delicate place now. And Harry will not be looked on favorably by the authorities." Dumbledore said.

"You mean because he lost his magic. Harry may be a muggle but he still has rights, doesn't he?" Hermione said. Both Dumbledore and Ron avoided her question and her gaze. "Muggles have no rights?" Hermione said aghast.

"What happens now?" Harry said.

"You will have to return to your family in Little Whinging." Dumbledore said.

"They are not family. I am not going back to the Dursleys." Harry said angrily. "What about Sirius? What about anybody else?"

"You need your mother's protection. Her love..."

"No, I refuse. I won't go back. You won't make me." Harry said.

"You must be reasonable, Harry." Dumbledore said sadly.

"What part of No do you not understand?" Harry stood up and walked to the locked door. "I want to leave. Unless you are holding me as a prisoner."

Dumbledore sighed. With a wave of his right hand, he unlocked the door. He motioned for Ron and Hermione to follow Harry.

The two Gryffindors tried to catch up but Harry simply ignored them and walked away. He had no desire to hear their feeble excuses for the Headmaster. They had made their choice. He would make his.

* * *

Harry ducked into an empty classroom. He had palmed the Marauder's Map before he left the nurse's wing. Dumbledore would not relent, but neither would he. Harry took out a quill and dashed off two letters. He wrote the first to Sirius, pleading for his Godfather to find some way to bring him to 12 Grimmauld Place. He wrote the second to Arthur and Molly, asking if the Weasleys would take him in, even if only for a week. If he had time, he could find a way to leave the Burrow to hide in London. Harry sat down and considered other possibilities. He could rent a room at the Leaky Cauldron or sneak over the Channel to Europe. He did not know how the French treated non magicals but Fleur Delacour had been grateful for his help in the Tournament. He could search for his grandfather's manor house. He wondered too whether his parents had left him anything else that he could use. He….

At that moment, a very familiar elf with large bat like ears popped into the room. Dobby still wore a tea towel instead of a Hogwarts uniform, but he had mixed and matched several colorful socks on his hands and feet. Harry recognized his gold Gryffindor sock from Year 2 when he had tricked Lucius Malfoy into freeing the elf. Dobby embraced Harry's right leg, tears flowing from his eyes. "Poor Master Harry Potter Sir!" he wailed.

Harry gently freed himself, and bent down on one knee to look at Dobby eye to eye. "It will be okay, Dobby. I lost my magic, not my life."

"I know, Ex Master Harry Potter." the elf said. "Dobby hears that Harry Potter will be forced to leave Hoggie Warts."

"I know, Dobby. I am thinking about where I can go. Wait - Ex Master? When was I your master?"

The elf flushed and looked down on the floor nervously. "Dobby may have bound himself to you. Dobby came to work in castle to be near the great Harry Potter sir."

"Oh." Harry thought for a second about the odd undefined nature of house elf magic. "So, when I lost my magic..."

"Bond broke! Dobby couldn't feel your magic. Now, Dobby has to be a Hogwarts elf to stay alive." The little elf looked about to cry again.

Then Harry had a thought. It certainly was not his first option - that would be Sirius Black taking him away from England - but it was infinitely better than a life of slavery in Little Whinging. "Dobby, could you buy me something in Diagon Alley - and bring it to me without anyone knowing?" The elf nodded his head eagerly. "Perfect. I have eleven galleons left. Can you buy me the best wizard tent possible with a sleeping bag?"

"Dobby will find the biggest, best tent possible. Dobby also will find bags and pouches with Extendable Charms, and make sure Harry Potter sir has all the food and drinks possible. Dobby will get chairs and couches and a bed and a desk and a bookcase and a table and "

"I only have eleven galleons, Dobby. I just need something to sleep in, so I can stay away from any wizards." a bemused Harry said.

"Dobby will, sir!" The determined little elf snapped his fingers, and Harry's coin pouch popped in his hand. "Dobby will do anything to help Harry Potter. Dobby be back soon." Harry smiled - even though he had lost his magic, Dobby refused to abandon him. The elf was a treasure.

* * *

Harry ate a cold lunch in the hospital wing. He had no desire to encounter more stares and whispers. The students had rushed away when he walked by, as if they feared the loss of magic was contagious. Harry checked the Map nervously, waiting for Dobby or Hedwig's return. Hedwig had flown off with the two letters hours ago.

The door to his room opened. A round faced dark blond haired wizard peeked through. Neville Longbottom was no longer the short chubby boy of first year but he was still shy, particularly around Harry. A younger student bounced behind Neville. She had long straggly waist length blond hair, and her silvery eyes seemed to wander, making her appear in a permanent daze. Harry had seen her on the Hogwarts Express this year but he didn't know her name.

"Hello, Harry." Neville said. "Can we come in?"

Harry nodded. "Hey, Nev. Who is your friend?"

"This is Luna Lovegood. She wanted to see you as well." Neville said. The odd witch stepped forward, her protuberant eyes intent on examining Harry.

Harry wondered if he had something on his nose. "Hello, Luna. It is nice to meet you." The witch curtsied, her curious eyes still not leaving his face.

"Harry. They are saying in the Great Hall that you are going to be expelled from Hogwarts." Neville blurted out.

Harry nodded. "I lost my magic. They don't allow non magicals at the school."

Neville looked around, worried that he would be overheard. "Harry, you could stay with me - I mean, if you like. At Longbottom Hall. You could hide there. Gran thinks it is disgraceful how you are being treated."

"How would I get there, Nev?" Harry asked curiously. "Wait - how does your Gran know?"

The girl with the dirty blond hair took out a wand from her left ear, and with a flick of her hand, the **Daily Prophet** appeared. "This was delivered at lunch."

Harry could see the headlines printed in bold and underlined twice. **"Harry Potter - The Boy Who Lost."** The lead story was on how Harry had been cursed and stripped of magic, quite deserved for a terrible liar who wanted to attract attention with deceitful stories. Another prominent column, written by Rita Skeeter, claimed that Harry's fate was justified by his treacherous behavior at the Triwizard Tournament to his fellow champions. Skeeter hinted at multiple bizarre love triangles, cheating aided by Hogwarts teachers, the use of Unforgivables, even involvement in the murder of Cedric Diggory. Several unnamed Slytherins were quoted as being glad to expose Harry for a boastful bully, throwing around the weight of his name and his influence at Hogwarts. An unknown teacher working in his potions lab in the dungeons thought that Draco Malfoy deserved a medal and a hundred house points for his bravery at confronting the dangerous unbalanced ex wizard.

The entire special edition of the **Daily Prophet** was dedicated to "the Potter Incident." Pages and pages of inflammatory articles emphasized that Harry was a disturbed lunatic who wanted nothing more than to attack his betters in the magical world. He was an inveterate liar whose lust for attention had been enabled by a senile Headmaster. Harry was a disgrace to the once great Potter name. Luckily he would be expunged from the family tree as a powerless muggle. Even by the standards of the **Daily Prophet**, this was a scurrilous low.

"I think it is even worse than that." an apologetic Neville said.

"How could it get any worse?" Harry asked.

"The Quibbler is hearing that the Ministry plans to obliviate you, snap your wand, and confiscate all your family accounts." Luna said.

Harry wasn't surprised. Fudge and his pet toad had tried to expel him from school for protecting himself from the dementors. "Neville, how could I get to Longbottom Hall from Hogwarts?"

"Err - I am not sure. I am not old enough to make a portkey, and you need a teacher to use a floo." Neville stammered.

"Even if Neville could make a portkey, the school wards would block it." Luna said.

"Then how did they make a two way portkey with the Triwizard Cup?" a perplexed Harry asked. Neville and Luna shrugged. That was another mystery that only the Headmaster claimed to understand. "Neville, I would be happy to stay at Longbottom Hall. But I don't see how I can get there. Dumbledore's people are guarding the Nursing Wing. The Ministry may send their own team. I can't fly out and I am sure any floo from Hogwarts is being watched."

"I know, Harry. Dumbledore has refused Gran's request to see you." the wizard admitted sadly.

"You tried, Neville. I am sorry I won't see your Hall." Harry didn't say any more but both boys knew this could be the last time they would ever meet.

Luna Lovegood walked up to Harry and pecked him on the cheek. "It is too bad, Harry. You would have been a great crumple-horned snorkack animagus." Harry raised his eyebrows but Neville merely shrugged. His friends left and Harry bade them goodbye.

Harry waited anxiously for Dobby or Hedwig to return. He checked the Map often, hoping to see any signs of the owl or elf but also on alert for anything unusual. If he saw multiple names converging on him, he would make a run for it under his Invisibility Cloak. He might be caught but at least he wouldn't surrender to the bastards.

* * *

That was odd. The dot with Hermione Granger's name was coming closer to him, but not directly. It was ducking and dodging - pausing when other students walked by - as if she were sneaking through the castle. But how would she evade the guards posted outside? Harry looked mesmerized as the dot passed into the Nursing Wing. He peeked through a gap in the door to his room. According to the map, Hermione was right there but there was no one.

"Harry." Harry was stunned. Did Hermione manage to swipe his Invisibility Cloak somehow? He glanced at his chest, but the Cloak was still there. Harry opened the door calmly and faint footsteps entered the room. The door closed by itself, and Harry heard his friend's voice casting a powerful privacy charms. Finally, he saw the bushy hair, followed by her face and chocolate brown eyes, and the rest of her body.

"Hermione, how did you get here?" a surprised Harry asked.

"**Disillusionment** charm."

Harry's eyes narrowed. "That's advanced magic - NEWT level. And you were completely invisible, not just camouflaged."

"Harry, I didn't just come to show you a spell." Hermione said urgently. "We don't have much time. I sent my mum an owl asking if you could live with us. I am sure she will say yes."

Harry gawked at his assertive friend. "Hermione, Dumbledore will never allow that. And how could I get to your house?"

The bushy haired witch looked at him intently. "Harry, I am running away with you. I am not going to let them take you away and obliviate you."

Harry wondered what happened to the jumpy first year witch who had been more afraid of being expelled than killed. "It is a nice thought, Hermione, but you have always loved Hogwarts. They will catch us and then you will be in trouble."

"I don't care. I don't care about being a prefect or first in the class. There are more important things than books and cleverness." Hermione said with fire in her eyes. "But how would we escape? They are watching me - Dumbledore's Order and the Ministry." Harry said perplexed.

Hermione pointed to his storage chest. "The Firebolt, Harry!"

Harry narrowed his eyes. "Hermione, I can't fly. You know that."

"But I can, Harry. I can fly the broom with you behind me. You just need to guide me." Hermione said.

Harry was shocked speechless. Hermione's willingness to leave Hogwarts had been surprising. But the idea of Hermione, a notoriously bad flier, zooming away from the castle on the Firebolt away from the Ministry aurors was astounding. "Who are you and what have you done with my Hermione?" Harry said in jest.

"Harry Potter, you prat." Hermione said heatedly. "You don't believe I can pull this off."

"How would you do it?" Harry asked with great curiosity.

"Your map shows secret tunnels from the castle to Hogsmeade. We can take one of them tonight. From the village, I will fly the Firebolt with you behind me. In the air, Hogwarts is only fifty miles away from Edinburgh. We can land there, and take a midnight train to London. I have a muggle credit card. We will be in my mum's house tomorrow evening." Hermione said.

It was a solid plan, Harry thought. With the invisibility cloak and the disillusionment spell, they could easily get to Honeyduke's without anyone noticing. The wizards would watch any magical transport, but ignore a muggle train. The Firebolt was so fast that Hermione would only need to fly for thirty minutes. "Alright, Hermione. We'll do it. I would love to live with the Grangers." The two friends hugged tightly, and Harry was struck by wonder that she would abandon her life at Hogwarts for him.

"Of course, I need to pack my books. I still want to take my OWLs. And maybe, you can learn runes and arithmancy." Hermione said hopefully. "We can review the theory at least."

Harry didn't want to point out that he had never studied either subject and he was pants at theory. He was still chuckling inside at the idea of Hermione the Flying Bandit, rescuing imprisoned wizards from meddling adults. But as Hermione prattled on about hiring tutors, constructing a potion lab, and building a library, Harry had a nagging thought. Only this morning, Hermione had followed Dumbledore's orders. He knew he should trust his friend but he needed a contingency plan. What if this was a trap? What if they came for him tonight? What if Dumbledore already knew somehow?

"So, Harry. We will leave at 8 pm tonight." Hermione said.

Harry nodded, knowing that the castle would be chaotic at the end of Saturday dinner in the Great Hall. "Okay. But first - do you mind casting a spell for me?"

"Of course, Harry. Which spell?" Hermione asked.

"**Serpensortia**."

* * *

The silver instruments on his desk whirled and sputtered, showing that the targets being tracked had not moved from the nursing wing. Dumbledore patted himself on the back for his foresight. He had not expected the Daily Prophet to strike so quickly but he had deployed two counter maneuvers. The first precaution was prosaic. Around the castle, Dumbledore had assembled the Order of the Phoenix - his loyal auror spies, Nymphadora Tonks, Emmeline Vance, Hestia Jones, Kingsley Shacklebolt, and Alastor Moody supported by a few other loyalists: McGonagall, Hagrid, Diggle, Podmore, and Snape. If the Ministry moved, the Order had orders to find Potter immediately and bring him to 4 Privet Drive. Dumbledore had created a Portkey to Little Whinging, technically a violation of Ministry regulations, but he trusted Moody's judgment and he doubted the crusty old auror would admit anything.

The other measure was an iron cage holding an irate snowy white owl. After seeing the letter Remus waved, the Headmaster adjusted the wards to specifically target Hedwig. The wards had shunted the owl into the the cleverly crafted prison, blocking the bird's magical signature. Dumbledore wasn't certain if Harry could still summon his owl, but he took no chances. After forcing Hedwig to surrender the mail, he had cast the most powerful locking charm he knew with the Elder Wand. The owl would be trapped for days.

Dumbledore sighed as he examined Harry's letters. He knew that both Sirius Black and Molly Weasley would be eager to take Harry into their homes for different reasons. Molly would at least wait for Dumbledore's permision but Black…. Sirius had not learned from his mistakes. The reckless wizard might well run to America where Harry would be beyond Dumbledore's reach. As for the Weasleys, Dumbledore had conditioned them to see Harry as family but how long would that last with a non magical? Molly could care less about her squib cousin. Once the Ministry seized the Potter vaults and lands, Harry would be only a curiosity, and Dumbledore worried that the boy would escape, when Molly's watchful eyes became bored. Better for the letters to vanish and Harry to have a dark and difficult time at 4 Privet Drive. That way, the boy would accept his sacrifice eagerly.

Harry had no place to go, no money and no allies except… Dumbledore thought. Harry had asked Sirius and the Weasleys for help. There was only one other person he was close to - a bright muggleborn witch. Harry had not written to Hermione's family - but perhaps she had contacted them already. Would Harry know how to get to the Grangers in some strange muggle vehicle? Dumbledore summoned a house elf. "Wilby - find Miss Granger. Tell her I have an old spellbook to show her." The elf bowed and popped out.

Ten minutes later, a nervous but curious Hermione Granger walked into the room. The headmaster, eyes twinkling, offered her a seat. "You asked to see me, Sir?" Hermione said.

"Ah yes, Lemon Drop?" He offered.

Hermione tried not to wrinkle her nose at the lump of pure sugar, and clear bane of dentists everywhere. "No, thank you." she said politely. Dumbledore pushed over an old and large book, bound in gray leather with the title in a rusted blood red - **Human Transfiguration**. "But Professor McGonagall said that was too dangerous for a fifth year student."

Dumbledore chuckled. "McGonagall said that about the time turner, and that turned out perfectly fine. I am certain the animagus transformation will be possible for a talented witch like you."

Hermione reached for the book reverently only to find her hands benumbed when they touched the cover's scaly skin. Her body began to freeze as the curse took hold, and she franticly attempted to rise, only to find herself paralyzed and stuck. She opened her mouth but no words came out. Dumbledore pointed a long dark wand at her.

"**Legilimens.**"

* * *

Harry placed several spell books into the magic tent that Dobby had purchased. At least he hoped that the excitable elf had bought the tent, and not somehow liberated it from an unaware shopkeeper. Dobby had outdone himself. The insides were spacious and comfortable with a small kitchen, chairs, reading lights, and a bed. There were sacks and barrels of victuals and drink, and not just plain water. The elf stocked the tent with butterbeer, pumpkin juice, and even a bottle of Ogden's Finest. Harry knew that even in the nonsensical magical world, eleven galleons did not go very far. Harry suspected Dobby had liberated a great deal from the castle but he was thankful to the little elf. There was even a large photo of a smiling Harry and a happy Dobby, signed **Best Master Ever!** hanging prominently in the den. That single room was larger than Harry's cramped bedroom at 4 Privet Drive.

Harry was about to place the family album into the tent when Dobby interrupted. "Ex Master Harry Potter, sir!"

Harry turned to the elf, his hands still on Hagrid's gift. "What is it, Dobby?"

"There be a tracking charm on that book, sir!"

Harry frowned. "Can you remove it?"

"Dobby can't. Charm cast by a powerful wand. Only a wand and wizard that powerful can erase the charm." Dobby wrung his hands.

Harry had a strong suspicion which wizard cast that particular charm. "Dobby, are there other charms on me? And if so, where?"

Dobby snapped his fingers and several items glowed bright red. The photo album of course, but also the broomstick and the silvery transparent cloak. The Marauder's Map though stayed the same faded beige. Either Dumbledore had overlooked it, or the Map had charms that resisted tracking. "Can Dumbledore track me now?"

"Youse do not show up anymore in magic, Harry Potter sir. You undetectable" Dobby said cheerfully.

Harry checked the map again. He saw a clump of names crossing the bridge into the castle. Bones, Yaxley, Travers, Dawlish, Jugson. He didn't know the last four but Bones was likely Madam Bones, the head of the DMLE. Harry's fears were confirmed when the group was met by Umbridge at the doors of the Great Hall and more names began to show, guarding several exits of the castle. He needed to move soon. Where was Hermione?

Harry's heart sank when he saw her red dot. There was another large group near the Headmaster's office. Dumbledore, Moody, Vance, Jones, Tonks, and the last dot - Hermione Granger. It was almost 7:30 pm. In thirty minutes, they were supposed to meet him near the statue of the one eyed witch which led to Honeyduke's but instead, she was in a conference with Dumbledore while the aurors were gathering near the Great Hall.

Harry was not a callow child, prone to simple and rash conclusions. Contrary to popular opinion, he was more than a hot headed Gryffindor who saw only black and white. Hermione could have betrayed him, but she could also have been cornered by Dumbledore. Sirius Black might have ignored him but his godfather might also not have received the message or done something stupid - just like he did a Halloween 14 years ago. Rather than taking care of a baby, Sirius Black rushed off for revenge, and Harry been left with the Dursleys. As for Hedwig, he wished he had said a proper goodbye to his first magical friend.

Harry was alone just like the 10 miserable years with the Dursleys - he could not rely on anyone else. There was no time for recrimination or despair. He had to act now. Harry would leave the broomstick, the cloak, and the album behind. But before he did, he would leave Hogwarts a reminder that the Potter family was not so easily controlled.

"Dobby, could you help me with a prank?" The house elf nodded eagerly. Harry smiled as he gave Dobby the broomstick, the cloak and the album.

* * *

Dobby had never flown before, but Harry told the elf that he could pop away at any time. Dobby mounted the broom, draped with the Invisibility Cloak. He burst out of Harry's room in the nursing wing, and zoomed past a startled Dedalus Diggle, knocking the floppy purple hat to the ground. Dobby dashed to the Great Hall, as students ducked for cover and Diggle gave chase. Harry could see on the Marauder's Map, Dumbledore and his followers rushing to intercept the broom, which would lead them directly to the Madame Bones and the Ministry group. He noticed that Hermione remained in the Headmaster's Office. He wondered briefly if he should find her but without the Firebolt, and without any way of knowing her loyalty, he had no time.

Harry made his way briskly but with care to the girl's lavatory on the second floor, ignoring the shouting and turmoil on the floor below. He entered Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, and hissed _Open_ at the tap with snakes, revealing an almost absurdly large circular hole. After he made sure the tent was strapped tightly to his back, Harry used his hands and feet to climb down to the bottom. He hissed_ Close_, and then lit a small torch.

Harry ignored the corpse of the basilisk, the giant statue of Salazar Slytherin, and the eerie columns of rampant stone snakes. He looked for other tunnels. Slytherin had lived almost a thousand years ago. Even if the basilisk hibernated often, a fifty feet long serpent still needed to eat and doubted that small animals were sufficient. Harry tapped the statue's legs and an echo rang. The statue was hollow and Harry remembered that in his second year, the basilisk had crawled out of Salazar's mouth. Harry climbed up the folds of Slytherin's robes and finally reached the mouth by the creases in Slytherin's beard.

Harry stared down the opening. The smell was disgusting, the waste of a thousand years. But when he lit the torch, he could see the pipe extend into the darkness, with a slight slope upwards. Slytherin must have built this for his pet so the basilisk could forage and hunt. Once when Harry was bored, he had read that wizards in the Middle Ages did not use bathrooms but instead vanished their own poop. Clearly no one had done so for the basilisk for a very long time. Harry crawled through the foul tunnel for hundreds of yards, trying not to vomit. Finally, the tunnel opened into a stream. He threw himself down, splashing onto the cold water. It was dark outside and thick with trees - beech, oak and yew - that obscured the light of the moon. On the banks, Harry could see the heavy undergrowth of thorns, brambles and knotgrass.

The Forbidden Forest was ancient and dense and rough looking. In their infinite wisdom, the wizards had sealed everything that was wild and frightening and perilous into these grounds, making a dangerous forest even deadlier. Harry stood up. He was free.


	3. The First Shift

**The First Shift**

After several hours, Harry finally prepared to rest. He had followed the stream away from the castle for miles until the deepening riverbed and the fast flowing current made it impossible to continue. He was drenched and cold, but grateful that the water had washed off the foul reminders of the tunnel. Harry trudged up the bank, ignoring the sharp thorns and low branches ripping at his clothes. The light of the nearly full moon led him to an area where the vegetation was less dense and between two massive cypress trees, there was almost enough room to pitch the tent. Harry took out a small sharp axe and chopped at the gnarled roots. When he was satisfied at the space, he smoothed out the dirt and ground with the back of the axe.

He pitched the tent and took out a loaf of hard bread and a hunk of cheese from the well stocked larder. He was too tired to cook, and washed down the simple meal with gulps of water from a flask. He would examine the provisions tomorrow, and was about to sleep before a high pitched scream pierced the night.

Harry rushed out of the tent, armed only with the tin dinner plate. He picked up the hand axe and heard noises in the forest: a rustling of leaves and feverish panting, like a frightened child running desperately. Then he saw the unicorn.

It was a bright golden foal, not much larger than a big dog, bleeding from long jagged scratches over its back and sides. Harry remembered from Kettleburn's Care of Magical Creatures class that unicorns turned white and silver as they aged. Only a baby, less than a year old, would be bright gold. An enormous black shape broke through the undergrowth, with sharp claws on many furry dark legs and four glowing red eyes reflecting the light from the tent. The monster reared up on its six hindmost legs and spread out another hairy pair, to seize its prey. Extending from its hideous face, Harry could see the acromantula's fangs, a pair of curved cruelly pointed organs, curving out and then inward, so that the points almost met. The beast was about to plunge those fangs, dripping with dark venom, into the shuddering unicorn.

Harry ran at the spider, shouting and trying to distract it from the injured foal. He threw the dish into the creature's maw, and sliced wildly, the small axe only glancing off the giant beast. The startled acromantula bit down, and the tin plate crumpled and cracked apart, before being spat out on the ground. The viscous black liquid hissed as it hit the dirt floor of the Forbidden Forest. Harry hoped the unicorn would run but the foal was shaking on the ground, multiple gashes bearing evidence that the fangs had already delivered its poison. The axe swiped again at the acromantula but bounced off the creature's hard shell. The spider skittered and snapped its front legs angrily, its four great eyes now focused on Harry.

Harry knew the axe was no match for the huge beast, nearly the size of Aragog. The acromantula only needed to land one blow from either fang or claw, and the battle would be over. He could run and shut the tent flaps but that would leave the foal helpless. Harry would never abandon a child to such a fate.

A great and terrible anger filled Harry - he refused to die in the Forbidden Forest from one of Hagrid's pets. He had been robbed of his magic, denied any hope of justice, and thrown away by the wizards to be shunted away to oblivion. He rejected that fate and he would not accept this - to fall to some dumb beast in the Forbidden Forest. Rage flooded his mind and Harry's muscles rippled with energy as powerful arms lengthened and reached the forest floor. He snorted and stared contemptuously at the acromantula, chittering with surprise. Harry knew that something immense had changed in his body, and reveled in this new form, bursting with life and vitality. Although all four limbs were on the ground, his eyes remained at the same height and Harry pawed the ground.

The baby unicorn's eyes widened with shock and fear. The acromantula circled warily, fangs clacking together in a futile attempt to frighten its new opponent. Harry ran straight at the spider, his ivory horn piercing entirely through the joint of the front leg, and the acromantula shrieked as the limb was severed. In a blur of motion, Harry slammed through the spider's body, blood gushing on the floor. The dark creature screamed in agony as its organs were ripped apart by the unicorn horn. With a shake of his head, Harry lifted the monster into the air and rammed the body into an aspen tree, pinning the acromantula's corpse like a hideous trophy.

Harry pulled away and the body fell down, streams of blood smearing the light bark with a dark red ichor. He turned to the injured foal who was still attempting without much success to crawl away. Harry trotted over but the child screamed again and desperately tried to stand.

The acromantula had been ripped to shreds. Harry realized that the baby unicorn was frightened of him. He shifted back again, and after brushing blood off his forehead, approached the foal, hands open to show that he meant no harm. Harry wondered at his remarkable transformation but he could think more later. He effortlessly lifted the unicorn, taking it to the bed in the tent. He covered the baby unicorn with blankets, washed its wounds, and gave it water to drink and raw vegetables to eat. When the foal was finally at rest, a tired Harry Potter lay down on the bed, his head next to the beast. Even in sleep, the unicorn shivered, suffering from the acromantula poison. Harry held the bright golden foal gently. "You will be okay" Harry said before falling into a deep dreamless sleep.

* * *

At Hogwarts, there were no embraces, gentle or otherwise. The Ministry and Dumbledore faced off, and even the Headmaster, famed for his calm demeanor, could not hide his frustration. Others were much more obvious.

"Dumbledore, where have you hidden Harry Potter? How dare you side with a muggle against wizards!" Umbridge spat.

"I have not hidden him at all. This morning I informed him he would need to leave Hogwarts and return to the muggle world. We were concerned he would do something rash and thought he was fleeing to the Great Hall." Dumbledore replied.

Amelia Bones wondered why so many of her aurors - Moody, Shacklebolt, Vance, Jones and that new purple haired recruit - were helping the Headmaster watch an ex-fifth year student, even if he was Harry Potter. "Do you have any idea where he went? And how he caused such a disturbance without the use of his magic?" Amelia expected Rita Skeeter and the **Daily Prophet** to run more articles on the near brawl in the Great Hall as both sides attempted and failed to bring down an invisible broom in front of hundreds of Hogwarts students.

"Alas, the boy had no desire to return to his family. I fear he has escaped to the magical world." Dumbledore said.

"But how? He can't use a wand. He shouldn't be able to fly a broom. There is no easy way to leave Hogwarts, except by the Express, and every exit was being watched by aurors." Amelia said.

"Hem, hem." Umbridge pointed a short stubby finger at the Gryffindor Table. "That filthy muggle must have had help. We should use veritaserum. A few days of detention will make them talk or a visit to Azkaban."

Dumbledore did not want Hermione Granger interrogated by Umbridge or the DMLE. "I believe we should focus on finding Harry. Not point fingers at students in good standing."

"The lad has an invisibility cloak. It might still work for him. We should scour the castle inch by inch." Moody said, his false eye whirling in every direction. "Constant vigilance!" he shouted for no reason.

"Alastor, Harry is completely devoid of any magic. Our detection spells won't work for him." Dumbledore said.

The heavily scarred auror harrumphed. "**Homenum Revelio** works for everyone."

The purple haired witch replied. "Moody, that spell has a 30 foot range. The castle is enormous. We would have to cast hundreds of **Revelios** and we still might miss."

"Lassie, we will do what it takes. He might even be hiding in plain sight, in this very room!" Moody snarled.

"Moody, Harry Potter doesn't want to follow Dumbledore's orders. If he had an undetectable invisibility cloak, he would leave Hogwarts. We need to check Hogsmeade and the grounds outside the castle." Amelia said.

"We have to stop him at any cost from escaping to the muggles. He should be killed on sight or immediately obliviated. He is a dangerous criminal and a menace to pureblood witches and wizards everywhere." Umbridge cried.

"Umbridge, you are not the head of the DMLE. There will be no kill on sight order. Harry Potter is not a fugitive - we have questions for him and the Unspeakables need to know what happened to his magic. He will not be hurt, obliviated, or banished anywhere before I have a chance to speak with him." Amelia said.

"Muggles have no right to know about magic. They must be obliviated or else we may be under threat." Umbridge said sweetly. "Think of the children."

"Four months ago, Harry Potter won the Triwizard Tournament - as a wizard. How are you certain that his magic is truly gone?" Amelia said.

"Unfortunately, Madame Bones, hope is not a solution." Dumbledore said mournfully.

Amelia Bones realized that Umbridge and Dumbledore both wanted to silence Harry - the first through an **obliviate** spell, and the second by exile beyond the reach of other wizards. And any idea that Umbridge and Dumbledore agreed upon - Madame Bones opposed. She looked over her aurors. Half cared only about their personal ambition. The other half followed Dumbledore without thinking. She had few true allies against the toad or the headmaster.

* * *

Hermione woke up, dreaming of brooms and trains. She had never liked flying but this time she soared free as a bird on the way to rendez vous the Midnight Express. Wizards wearing red robes on brooms chased her but she hardly worried. She was an apex predator, a hawk among pigeons, a sleek bird of prey. Hermione blinked sleepily. What a strange dream! Hermione wasn't a hawk but an owl. And speaking of OWLs, she checked her calendar. Only 236 more days before the first OWL exam. She would have to study relentlessly to ensure her selection as the Head Girl, then an apprenticeship in Transfiguration, followed by a solid if predictably dull marriage to a well connected Light family and a job in the Ministry. That was what she really wanted to be in life - a government apparatchik, writing reports on centaur customs or cauldron handles.

Hermione went to her book shelf to prepare for the Transfiguration test on Monday. She wanted to practice her Owls to Opera Glasses spell, a difficult thing without a personal owl. The **Intermediate Transfiguration** book was nowhere to be found. In fact, none of her fifth year textbooks, with the exception of the inane Wilbert Slinkhard book, was near her desk and her bookcase had been ransacked. Did a horde of Ravenclaws burst into her room and steal her most prized books? She was certain Lavender and Parvati would not trash her shelves, particularly not early Sunday morning.

Hermione looked around her room, finally finding her prized books in her chest under the bed. On the top layer, there were guides to getting an O+ on her OWLS, and below that were her copious sheafs of notes written this summer on the fifth year material. Someone had packed her books last night. No - Hermione remembered now. She had packed her books last night. She had decided to leave the Slinkhard book, anything written by Gilderoy Lockhart, and the **Monster Book of Monsters**. She was afraid that would eat her other books, particularly her beloved** Hogwarts: A History**. Her favorite book was buried at the bottom of the storage chest.

Hermione sat down to think. Harry Potter had escaped last night. Despite being invisible, he had flown his broom over the Great Hall, and smacked Draco Malfoy in the face with a large treacle tart. The Slytherin table was not the only one to be food bombed. Ron Weasley had been hit with a giant black pudding as the broom whizzed over the students, hurling dishes and upsetting tables. Hermione had not been there but the story had been recounted several times in the Gryffindor Common Room, with Ron Weasley bemoaning that the Firebolt had disappeared along with Harry Potter.

Hermione had wanted to leave the castle last night. The evidence was obvious in her choice of books. She had wanted to leave with Harry. A whisper told her not to be foolish. Her studies were more important and the OWLs - silly girl - she needed to study for the OWLs. Hermione gritted her teeth. Someone had confunded her, or obliviated her - or possibly both. She was going to run away from Hogwarts, and her memories of last night were a blur after she had packed her books.

A tawny mail owl flew into her room. Hermione cautiously took the letter. It was a reply from Emma Granger.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Of course, Harry is welcome to come stay with us. We will see you tomorrow, sweetie - We can't wait to meet your best friend, Harry Potter!_

_Mum_

Hermione shivered. She did not recall the letter she had written her mum. Somebody had changed her mind by force, and then proceeded to edit her memories. She had no idea whether it was an **Imperio**, an **Obliviate**, or a **Compulsion** charm but she felt awful - violated. And if they did this once, they could do it again. She swore she would not let that happen - no matter what.

* * *

The unicorn was dying. Harry bathed the golden unicorn in cold river water, and gave it pumpkin juice to drink but the poor creature was clearly in pain. The skin had turned dark blue near the acromantula's bite marks, and the foal shivered even though its body was hot to the touch. The unicorn did not scream in agony - it either did not have the energy or had resolved to meet its fate bravely. Harry rubbed the sweat off the unicorn's forehead. It was so young that the ivory horn was still short and silken.

Harry had considered taking the unicorn back to Hogwarts. He would be captured and most likely imprisoned by either the Ministry or Dumbledore but he could at least save the child. He was too far into the Forbidden Forest though (and probably lost) and even with his new found strength, it would take hours to get back. He doubted the unicorn had that much time - it was fading quickly.

Harry walked over to the river bank. The death of a child was a terrible thing. Harry forced his mind to the emotional state of last night against the acromantula - a surge of anger, bitterness against the injustice of the world, rage against the dying of the light. A great fury overtook him, and he shifted. Power and energy flooded his body as he transformed.

Harry looked down at the river. A coal black unicorn looked back at him, with bright green eyes, and a lightning bolt scar on the right side. A corkscrew ivory horn jutted from the head, and the black hair flowing down the mane was long and wild. He was huge - taller than the unicorns at Hogwarts by a full head. He was strong - his muscles rippled as he lifted his neck and raised his front legs to the sky. And he could heal - Harry knew that instinctively.

The child cringed but Harry approached calmly. He remembered Dumbledore's ponderous pronouncements in his First Year. The blood of an unicorn kept Quirrell alive, even as Voldemort's possession weakened his body. The headmaster had yammered about cursed lives and horrible fates but that was irrelevant. Harry would give his blood voluntarily.

He bent his head to his right front leg, making a deep cut with the horn. The silvery substance flowed out, glittering and gleaming even in the sunlight. The foal squeaked a bit, but Harry extended his leg, offering the blood. "It's okay. You aren't stealing my blood, Little One." The baby unicorn began to drink and its body started to heal. The dark blue marks of the poison vanished, the gashes on the back mended, and the dull skin brightened to a rich gold, as the sweat and shivers disappeared. The foal stood strong and tall, suffused with the magic of the life blood. Harry's blood.

Harry could no longer cast spells - but he was still a parseltongue. He could use the Marauder's Map created by his father and the Invisibility Cloak that belonged to his family. There was magic in his blood - not that of wands or potions or spell books - but the power was there still. He had healed the baby unicorn. He had gained a new form, a powerful one.

Harry looked at himself again. He was blacker than the darkest night, with two exceptions - his ivory horn with traces of his silver blood, and his mother's bright emerald eyes. When the gold unicorn child matured, it would turn to a pure white that would make fresh snow seem gray. Harry knew that that would never happen to him. If white Unicorns were a sign of purity, then what were black unicorns? And what did it mean, that he had transformed into one?

* * *

Dumbledore checked the silver instruments for the third time with the exact same result. The photo album, the Fire Bolt, and the Cloak were all on the 7th floor, next to the tapestry of the dancing trolls. Someone had hidden the items in the Room of Requirement beyond his reach. Even the Elder Wand had failed to find anything, and certainly no traces of Harry Potter. The boy had vanished and ruined the work of 15 long and hard years.

The wards of 4 Privet Drive had fallen. The map using blood magic to track Harry had crumbled to dust. Even the simple clock attuned to Harry's health stopped. He had no idea whether Harry was alive or dead. Like many powerful witches and wizards, Dumbledore coveted knowledge and information. He had hidden Trelawney's first prophecy from both Harry Potter and Voldemort, and given the Boy Who Lived a few crumbs to follow as the Chosen One. Of course Harry would die in a few years, but as an inspiration to the Light, not as an emotional teenager, angry at adult authority.

Dumbledore stared at the mess on his desk. He had freed Hedwig and cast a powerful tracking charm, hoping the owl would fly to its master. Instead, the snowy owl glared at the Headmaster and refused to move, squatting next to the array of tracking devices. After an uncomfortable stare down, Hedwig hopped up in the air and pissed all over the bowl of lemon drops. The owl then stormed off, but not before an angry hoot directed at Fawkes.

Dumbledore had summoned a house elf for more lemon drops when Professor McGonagall rushed in. "Headmaster, they found something."

* * *

Several teachers and aurors were assembled near the back of the school, where a cold stream met the walls of the castle. Judging from the grin on Umbridge's face, the news was not good.

"The Unspeakables found a faint trace of magic in the water. There are not sure what it is - could be a broom or a magical chest. It was leading away from the castle." Amelia said. She pointed at the dark dangerous woods looming in the distance. "We think he went into the deepest parts of the Forbidden Forest."

"The boy will never survive. The Forest is dangerous enough with magic - but without it, he will be dead before the end of the day." a tough looking auror with short grey hair said.

"Good riddance to bad rubbish. No doubt he is being eaten by the centaurs as we speak. I wonder if those beasts tortured him before they ate him." Umbridge giggled.

"Centaurs are vegetarians." Professor Grubbly-Plank said.

"Perhaps the werewolves have gotten him - or the trolls - or feral hippogriffs." Umbridge said eagerly.

"Harry may be alive. He has been to the Forest every year and survived." Hagrid said.

"Why was he in the Forbidden Forest?" Amelia asked.

"Well in the first year, he served detention there. In the second year, he met the acromantulas. In the third, he was chased by a werewolf. In the…."

"What? You sent a student into the Forbidden Forest for detention?" Amelia shouted. A red faced McGonagall stared down on the ground while Hagrid looked to Dumbledore for support.

"Amelia, it is the custom at Hogwarts that teachers can assign whatever detention they choose. We believe a firm hand is necessary to control the classroom." Dumbledore said soothingly.

"It is the Forbidden Forest for a reason Dumbledore. Why are you allowing the Forest to be used as punishment?" Amelia asked.

"Hogwarts has its traditions. Teachers and Head of Houses have discretion to award points and punishment, Even the headmaster rarely interferes with such decisions." Dumbledore said.

"We didn't go far then - only a few hundred feet. Plus Fang was with him." Hagrid said. Luckily, Bones did not know the fearsome looking boarhound was a complete coward.

The tough looking auror turned to Madame Bones. "Should I lead a group into the Forest?"

"That part of the Forbidden Forest is extremely dangerous and sacred to the centaurs. Even the strongest warriors are afraid of treading there." Grubby-Plank said.

Dumbledore looked to Hagrid for elaboration. "She's right, Headmaster. Firenze said that Bane and Magorian have given orders to kill any human who despoils that area. Older and more dangerous creatures lurk there." Hagrid added.

"We can't risk it, Dawlish. We don't want an interspecies incident, not on holy ground." Bones ordered somberly. "Headmaster, do you have any way of locating Harry or asking the denizens of the Forest for help? Even if he is dead, we owe it to James and Lily to recover his body."

"Since the events of the Triwizard, the centaurs have retreated further into the Forest. The tribe has no desire to be involved in a conflict with Voldemort. If they will not deal with Hagrid, they will not speak to anyone else at Hogwarts." Dumbledore said.

"Poor Harry." McGonagall cried. She conveniently forgot that she had done nothing to help her wee cub. She had assigned the detention the First Year in the Forbidden Forest.

"Yes, he was like a grandson to me." Dumbledore said. In the pity party that followed, no one noticed the glint in Umbridge's eyes as she concocted a dastardly plot.

* * *

Susan Bones frowned at the astonishing myopia of the magical world. News that Harry Potter had run off to the Forbidden Forest spread like wildfire through Hogwarts. The general opinion was that the reckless Potter had lost his mind along with his magic and was sitting in some monster's belly. Most students thought that it hardly mattered. After all, Harry was only a muggle now and nobody, except perhaps the lowly muggleborn, cared about the non magical. He was no longer the Boy Who Lived and was unimportant in their world. A small but vocal minority claimed that Potter had gotten his comeuppance for defying the Ministry and his betters. These were mostly witches and wizards with ties to the Malfoy family.

No one spoke about the elephant in the room. Harry Potter claimed that Voldemort had returned last June, killing Cedric Diggory at the Third Task. Minister Fudge had denied this, launching an smear campaign against Potter and Dumbledore. The vitriol of the attacks by the Daily Prophet convinced Aunt Amelia that Harry was speaking the truth but she was unable to investigate the Triwizard Tournament. Fudge refused to authorize an inquiry by the DMLE, muttering instead that Dumbledore and his followers were conspiring against the Ministry.

If Voldemort returned and Harry Potter was dead… the implications for Magical Britain were ominous. She wasn't sure if all the rumors were true but Harry had defeated the Dark Lord when he was one, and foiled several plots against the school. Losing Harry could mean an easy victory for Voldemort. Susan had been too young to remember her mum and dad but she had been orphaned in the First Wizard War. Aunt Amelia would also be in danger, and while the Bones family had not followed Dumbledore blindly, they would be targets of the Death Eaters.

Susan rushed over to speak to her aunt when she entered the Great Hall. Her aunt looked at her seriously and then motioned for her auror guards to step away.

"Auntie, they are saying that Harry ran away to the Forbidden Forest and got eaten by centaurs!"

"Who are they?" Madame Bones asked.

"The Slytherins mostly, but all the students know that Harry is missing." Susan replied.

"Well, centaurs don't eat meat but yes - we have found evidence he went to a dangerous area in the Dark Forest." Amelia admitted. "But it is possible he is alive. If the stories are true, Harry Potter has survived some crazy adventures."

"What should I do, Auntie? If the Dark Lord returns, will he attack us again?" Susan asked.

"Just keep your eyes and ears alert. Work on your Defense spells, and find people you can trust. Be brave, Susan. We beat the Dark Lord once, and we can do it again." Amelia said.

* * *

Susan nodded. Unlike her aunt, she was free from Ministry Politics. Auntie had told her to watch for any tidbits of information. She knew who would be the best source. After her aunt left with the aurors, Susan walked over to the Gryffindor table. Even in his own house, Harry Potter was only mentioned in passing. Few wizards deigned to speak about non magicals.

"OI! I can't believe he took his broom with him. He is such a selfish prat." Ron said, munching on fried sausages, fried bacon, fried eggs, and fried potatoes. There was a tiny tomato to add a vegetable to the great British fry-up.

"Ron, you want to be a keeper. Why do you need a fast broom?" Hermione asked.

"You don't understand anything about quidditch!" Ron ranted.

"She's right Ron - all you have to do is sit in front of the goal post and block the Quaffle." Ginny Weasley said. "So just keep eating, Ron. You will be so fat you can just float and play for the Chudley Cannons."

The young Weasley boy was about to trumpet the proud history of the Cannons when an angry owl swooped on the table. Hedwig went directly for Hermione Granger's plate, and the owl gave the witch a baleful look.

Hermione picked up Hedwig and ruffled her feathers. "I know, Hedwig. I miss him too."

"Hermione? Could I speak to you?" Susan asked.

"OI! What is a Puff doing here - are you spying on our quidditch team?" Ron asked half suspiciously, half in jest.

"Ron, you haven't made the team yet. And we don't play the Puffs for a few months." a smirking Ginny added, having made the team as a Reserve Chaser.

"Happy to talk, Susan." Hermione finished her last bite of salad.

* * *

The two witches walked off to a deserted classroom with Hedwig tagging along on Hermione's shoulder. The bushy haired witch looked on curiously as Susan cast several privacy charms.

"What's on your mind, Susan?"

"I want to know exactly what is going on with Harry. Why did he run?" Susan asked.

Hermione's eyes narrowed. "Why, so your aunt can capture him and **obliviate** him?"

"Absolutely not. Fudge may be hiding his head in the sand but Auntie wants to find out exactly how Cedric died. So do the Unspeakables. They would take him into custody to ask questions about the Dark Lord. There are all these stories swirling around Harry - dementors, the Triwizard, a basilisk - and no one knows the truth. " Susan said. "Hermione, my parents died in the last war - killed by Death Eaters when I was one. If Voldemort has returned, I will help fight him and so will my aunt."

Hermione chewed her lower lip. She didn't trust the Ministry, particularly after the last year's fiasco at the Third Task, but Amelia Bones had an excellent reputation. "I am not sure what I can say. I wanted to run away with Harry yesterday…."

"What happened?" Susan asked.

"I think I was obliviated." Hermione said miserably. "I can't remember parts of last night. And there was a compulsion spell so I would forget trying to help Harry."

Susan gasped and then the fierce Hufflepuff witch made up her mind. "Hermione - have you heard of occlumency? And if not, do you want to learn?"

* * *

Harry enjoyed running as an unicorn. He was fast and strong, and untroubled by anything in the Forbidden Forest. An adult acromantula or werewolf might have attacked a foal but would shrink from a full grown stallion, and Harry was far larger than normal. The colt glanced nervously at the Harry's giant black form but still trotted next to him. Harry was taking the foal back to the herd. The wounds had healed, and the next morning, the baby unicorn had been frisky, even playful. Harry knew the unicorn's parents would miss their child so they had gone deeper into the forest.

They burst into a glade of bright emerald green guarded by a circle of oak trees sprouting thick growths of mistletoe. Rockfalls of crystal clear spring water were fed by multiple blue waterfalls. The baby unicorn squealed with joy as it saw the herd and galloped over to a silvery white mare. Harry felt an overwhelming sense of life and love, and the awesome sense of peace. Then the herd saw him.

Several unicorns rose in alarm and made a wall around the fairy glen. The mares rounded up the colts and fillies, forming a protective semi circle. Six stallions turned towards Harry, showing a phalanx of horns as they pawed the ground and snorted. The herd rejected him, and warily prepared to defend themselves against the black intruder.

A burst of anger surged through Harry. How dare they? He had saved the child at the risk of his life. He was larger and stronger than any of them. Six of them might be difficult but Harry was offended at the insult. He lowered his head, the ivory horn gleaming.

"Stop." The one who spoke those words had wild silver hair that flowed unevenly over the shoulders of a blue and white dress. Her eyes had seen too much and yet remained kind. Those ethereal eyes enraptured Harry, even more than her flawless elegance or her aura of otherworldly power. If the moon and the stars fell to the Earth, they would look like this woman. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, and part of him - a very large part - wanted to worship her like the herd of unicorns who bowed reverently in her presence.

"You cannot pass. You bear a curse, and cannot enter the unicorn glade." The woman said.

"Who are you, my lady?" Harry asked.

"You do not know?" she asked with a touch of surprise. When Harry nodded, she continued. "I am Lurue, the Unicorn Queen." Her right hand reached for his face and touched his lightning bolt scar.

Pain and suffering overwhelmed Harry. He saw then the life of Tom Marvolo Riddle - the obsession with power, the murders for arcane rituals, the sadistic brutality against both ally and enemy produced by a horrible childhood. He saw visions of death and destruction and Harry knew that he was responsible - he had done all these terrible things in his insatiable thirst to escape death. As Harry screamed and fell down, he shifted back to human form.

"I thank you for saving the child - but you bear the touch of evil."

"Voldemort." Harry gasped and touched his scar. "I have a piece of Voldemort's soul."

She nodded. "I had thought you were her messenger - that is why the herd fears you. You represent their darkest dreams."

"The black unicorn?" Harry asked. "What does it mean? Have you seen others like me?"

"Like but not alike. You are a man - not an unicorn, even if you can take the form. But there are dark unicorns, corrupted in other worlds." Lurue said.

"I am sorry, my Lady. I do not understand." Harry said miserably. He had never heard even a hint of a black unicorn before his shift.

Lurue looked sad. "Long ago, the fey ruled the first age of the world. There were many fairy glens where the seelie court would visit, untouched by evil. There were trees tall as mountain, living bodies of water, and forests untouched by man. Then she came and promised even greater beauty and eternal spring, a paradise that lured thousands of the faerie, even some of mine. The Queen of Air and Darkness trapped them, and corrupted entire races - twisting them into quicklings, bramble faeries, and spriggans - dark copies of the fey. She created black unicorns, perversions that revel in war and death. She haunts the faerie, even today."

"But my scar comes from Voldemort. I have never met her." Harry said.

"Your form is a black unicorn, Harry Potter. It is an omen, but of what I cannot truly tell. But your fate may be tied with hers. Perhaps she plotted your transformation. If she awakens, she will bring horrors this world has never even imagined." Lurue said.

"Can she be defeated?" Harry asked.

"She has been beaten - but both times, the cost has been great. "

"I have fought a Dark Lord before." Harry said.

"She is far more than a mortal wizard fleeing death. I am one of the Eldest of the fey, the queen of all the talking beasts. I serve the Earth Goddess as friend and steed, but I fear what is to come. I fear the Queen of Air and Darkness. She has no mercy, not for any of the faerie. She will rise and hunt my children down." Lurue looked at the golden and silver foals sadly.

Harry had given his blood to prevent the unicorn foal from dying. He would not allow the child to be hunted or corrupted or tortured into evil. "I won't let that happen. I will save them from her, I swear."

"You are a fool, Harry Potter, and you have made an impossible vow. But a unicorn is an impossible creature. And a black unicorn seeking to save the world is even more implausible. Do not underestimate the Queen. She will corrupt and deceive you - and you will struggle against her alone. Only with friends and allies, can you hope to challenge her." Lurue said.

"Friends and allies? I am alone in the Forbidden Forest." Harry said.

"Your friends have not forgotten you, Harry Potter. When the time comes, you will need every one of them - even those who betray you." Lurue said.

Harry nodded. He had beaten the odds before - against Quirrell, the basilisk, the dementors, and the third task. He had a piece of Voldemort's soul - embedded in the scar - and he wondered what effect it had. Could he remove it or would it corrupt him? Had it already done so and driven his first shift? He really wished Hermione was here to research this.

Harry waved goodbye to the baby unicorn and left the fairy glade with regret. As he walked away, the Unicorn Queen whispered her parting words. "Don't lose hope, Harry Potter. The greatest battle lies within."


	4. Darkness Rising

**Darkness Rising**

Hermione glanced around the gold ceilings and burnished bronze doors of the marble conference room and wondered again why she was at Gringott's that Wednesday afternoon. She had been told by Professor McGonagall to wear formal robes and then herded in the Gyffindor Common Room with Neville Longbottom and Ron Weasley. Hedwig perched on her shoulder as the students marched behind Dumbledore and a few teachers through the Floo in the Headmaster's office to the bank. The room had been expanded to a vast chamber, the size of a small ballroom. Hermione was surprised at the number of attendees. Several other students were there as well - Draco Malfoy, Susan Bones, and a witch with straggly long blonde hair reading an upside down edition of The Quibbler, titled _**Harry Potter, the Lost Prince**_.

Hermione knew of course that this convocation was over the Potter family assets. The heavy presence of Ministry officials, including a pompous Cornelius Fudge and exceedingly smug Dolores Umbridge, made that clear. She did not understand why she was there or why certain other families like the Longbottoms and the Weasleys were attending. She sat next to Susan Bones and a rather severe witch with auburn red hair and a monocle.

"Susan - what are you doing here?" Hermione asked.

"Auntie and I are here to hear arguments on Harry's estate."

"Do we even know if he is dead?" a perplexed Hermione asked.

"Even if he is alive, Harry isn't a wizard. So he can't have an account at Gringotts. And if he is dead, they would execute the will." Susan said.

Hermione thought the world of Harry Potter. Despite the adversity in his life, her best friend was brave, kind, and relatively normal. That said, he wasn't the type inclined to long range planning - and he was a 15 year old boy for Merlin's sake. "What if he didn't write a will?"

Susan's aunt turned to the bushy haired muggleborn. "Then this will get much uglier."

As Hermione peered about, she noticed the naked greed on many faces. Fudge and Umbridge were a given - she heard whispers that the Ministry itched to claim the Potter lands to "honor" their memory. But both the Malfoys and the Weasleys looked anxious to claim their fair share. What possible claim could those two families share on the Potters? Hermione's mind was all awhirl. Why in Merlin's name was she here? McGonagall and Dumbledore couldn't possibly expect her to demand money from her friend, like a crow ripping at the barely dead carcass of the Potter family.

* * *

"Hem, Hem." a toad like woman, dressed in sickly pink from her bulbous pillbox hat to her clunky clogs, began. "We are gathered here to make sure poor Harry Potter, so dear to all of our hearts, isn't cheated now that he - ahem - is no longer with us." Umbridge clutched both hands to her chest like she actually cared.

"Point of order" Dumbledore, in a robe emblazoned with yellow stars and silver moons, interjected. "Is there any proof that Harry Potter has passed?"

An old and very stout goblin rose with a short stubby rod clutched his right hand. "Harry Potter's Heart Stone has been extinguished." The crowd gasped but Hermione sensed an undercurrent of hidden delight.

"Did Harry Potter leave a will?" A tall bony witch wearing a hat with a stuffed vulture asked.

"Objection." Umbridge screeched. "The will of a muggle has no bearing on magical inheritance."

The head goblin slammed down the rod for silence, ignoring the outcry. "No will was registered with the bank."

A high pitched titter escaped from Umbridge's mouth before it twisted into a smirk. "Without a will, the Potter assets belong to the Ministry. We demand that the family vaults be surrendered post haste."

Dumbledore rose. "I believe that Harry would have wanted his wealth to be shared with his friends and supporters. His best friends are in the chamber - Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger - and I am certain Harry would have wished to provide them a legacy. I also have a document signed by James and Lily Potter, attesting their wishes to support the Light."

A hard faced blond wizard with the same disdainful sneer as Draco Malfoy spoke. "Headmaster, your claims on Harry's wishes and that so-called document are irrelevant, and as Chief Warlock, you have sealed the Potter will for over a decade. Through my wife, the Malfoys are the closest family alive to Harry Potter, and we demand a share of the Potter assets."

A tall patrician witch with light brown hair and violet eyes stood up. "I am the closest living relative to Harry Potter. I am elder to Narcissa, making me closer to Dorea Black."

Lucius Malfoy responded. "You were erased from the Family Tree. Therefore your tie to the Black family is suspect."

"Your heir was the one who erased Harry Potter's magic. That should invalidate any Malfoy from inheriting." Andromeda retorted.

The chamber broke down into a mess of claims and denunciations. Dumbledore seemed content to allow his catspaws, Remus Lupin, Molly Weasley, and Minerva McGonagall to push back against the avarice of the Ministry. The goblins were scrupulously silent as the witches and wizards continued their heated exchanges.

"Susan, is it always this chaotic?" Hermione asked her new Hufflepuff friend.

"No noble family has died without a will in a very long time. The Potter assets are quite substantial. One of the Potters invented several potions used today - Skele-Gro, Sleakeazy's, and the Pepper-Up potion." Susan answered.

"But aren't their rules for how this is handled?" Hermione asked.

"Not really. In the old English councils, noblemen would argue until they decided something. That is how the Wizengamot was created, noble houses forming different factions." Susan said.

"This is how Harry's money will be divided? It seems so barbaric." Hermione said.

"You are absolutely correct, Miss Granger. But there are no laws here. Just a question of which claims are recognized here." Amelia Bones said.

Dumbledore has just finished his rhapsody on the power of love despite Ministry heckling, when the goblins interrupted. Ragnuk the Seventh raised his rod for silence. "Harry Potter's Heartstone has been extinguished but the Stone of the Potter family has not. Gringott's recognizes a Potter Heir and declares that all Vaults will be sealed."

"But, Harry is the last Potter." A dumbfounded Dumbledore said.

"Perhaps one of his noble relatives, untainted by muggle blood, has been recognized as heir. Is the Heir Lucius Malfoy?" Umbridge simpered.

Ragnuk's face broke into a murderous smile. "If Mr. Malfoy would like to see if the Potter Family Ring accepts him, he is more than welcome." Malfoy flushed a Weasley red and hastily declined. "If there are no further questions, then…."

"Wait - what about the money from the Potter Vaults?" a confused Fudge asked.

"All transfers from any vaults affiliated from the Potter family are null and void." Ragnuk declared.

"But the Potter Foundation!" Fudge squeaked.

"The Foundation that the Ministry seized which has never given out any money for the last 14 years?" Ragnuk asked rhetorically. "Closed until the Potter Heir declares otherwise. As are all other transactions."

Minister Fudge turned pale. Hermione was glad the Ministry had not gotten their hooks on Harry's money but her mind was on another question. Who was the Potter Heir?

* * *

The clearing was not as grand as the unicorn glade but gave enough space for the centaurs to charge. Harry would have ignored the bellicose herd but he owed Firenze for carrying him on his back in his First Year from the Forbidden Forest. The palomino centaur had approached him respectfully and said the tribe wished to train him so he could be serve the Unicorn Queen. Otherwise, Harry had no desire to participate in these bizarre contests of strength and skill.

The centaurs had set up crude archery butts using sacks of grain placed on mounds of earth. The five sacks were held in an indentation on the mound so the motion of the arrow did not push the target off the mound. Each front had paper with rings of different colors. Harry decided that Hagrid must have supplied the centaurs with the sacks and paper.

Bane used a powerful curved horn bow to shoot arrows from 200 feet ago into the targets. A few centaurs admired his accuracy while two warriors trotted and threw javelins at shorter distances. Other centaurs carried long wooden spears, 10 feet long, and galloped hard at each other like knights in a joust. They pulled away at the last minute, their lances clanking harmlessly.

"I am not sure exactly what I am supposed to be learning here." Harry said.

The black haired and wild looking war chief of the tribe stopped his archery. "We are training you to be a great warrior. To learn the bow and spear so that you can serve Lurue as a champion." Bane said.

Harry cocked his left eyebrow. He had missed the part where he had signed up to serve the Unicorn Queen. After the experience with Dumbledore, he had no inclination to blindly follow anyone, even if Lurue was clearly on the side of the angels. "I am not a centaur. When I shift into a unicorn, I have no arms free. So I don't see how using the bow or spear matters."

"Harry, you have been touched by the Unicorn Queen." Firenze said. Harry rubbed the lightning bolt scar and remembered the extremely painful touch, courtesy of Voldemort's soul fragment. "Lurue uses the unicorn horn in battle but she has also resorted to other weapons. In a great battle against the obyrith, she struck with arrows from afar."

Harry wondered what an obyrith was. With his luck, he would have to fight them as well. Still he thought these lessons were pointless. Mastering the bow took many years. He doubted that he would have enough time, and even the heavy Arithmancy book, **A New Theory of Numerology**, was more appealing than stringing a bow and releasing dozens of shafts. "Thanks, Firenze. But I am not interested in archery or throwing spears." Harry said.

"You humans are weaklings, and not hardy enough to train to be warriors." Bane snorted.

Harry responded cooly. "I don't see how throwing a spear from horseback matters when I won't be riding a horse or carrying a spear."

"Bah, in the battles that come, you will be outmatched." Bane said.

"I managed well enough against the acromantula." Harry replied.

"A dumb beast. The servants of the Queen are more cunning and dangerous. You will be easily beaten." Bane snorted.

Harry doubted that. The centaurs had not seen his true form, and after the reception by the unicorns, Harry had no desire to show others. As he walked away, he heard Bane ululate and gallop after him. The idiot chieftain had picked up a thin spear made of white wood. The lance was made of hornbeam, Harry knew - effective against the faerie in its similarity to cold iron.

Harry ducked and dived as Bane stabbed the spear at him. Full of murderous rage, he shifted into his form - a black unicorn. Even through the angry haze, Harry heard the cries of shock from the other centaurs and Firenze's attempts to defuse the situation. He stared at Bane eye to eye as the heavily muscled centaur circled him cautiously. Harry doubted that Bane meant to seriously harm him, but he had enough of idiots telling him what to do because he lacked magic.

Bane ran toward him, speeding up from a canter to a gallop. The centaur held the spear with both hands like a club, wary of the razor sharp unicorn horn. Harry waited until Bane was nearly on him, and then he moved so quickly that to the naked eye, he appeared to apparate to Bane's right side. He slashed down with the corkscrew horn and the spear shattered in half, with the centaur only holding a useless stick. Harry then immediately pressed his head under Bane, and with a jerk of his powerful neck, flung the centaur up in the air. Bane thudded heavily on the ground prone, legs sticking up in the air. Harry plunged his horn down, until the tip of the ivory horn was barely an inch from piercing Bane's left eye.

"Harry, STOP! Please." Firenze called.

Harry shook off his rage and bloodlust. He turned his head toward the rest of the centaur herd, shocked by the ferocity of the combat. "I don't need your training, and I don't need your help." He snorted and trotted back to his tent. He would tread his path alone. Behind him, the centaurs attended to their stunned chieftain and gaped at the brutality of the black unicorn.

* * *

In an abandoned manor house in Little Hangleton, Voldemort mused on how quickly things could change in the fickle magical world. He had expected long months of planning and plotting to recruit new followers and seize the reins of power. Instead, Harry Potter's loss of magic had changed everything. His Death Eaters had spread the word that the Dark Lord could destroy the magic of any who opposed him and magical Britain had swallowed that, hook, line and sinker.

Many gray and dark families had defected to his side en masse. In the past few days, the Bulstrodes, the Carrows and the Flints had sworn allegiance, although the Carrows asked that Flora and Hestia be spared any contact with the incestuous Amycus and Alecto. Families who had served in the First Wizard War had rushed to pledge gold and their young heirs to be marked. Neutrals like the Macmillans and Horace Slughorn had extended feelers, hoping for terms of surrender. In one fell swoop, Lord Voldemort had effectively conquered Britain, with only a few holdouts like the Greengrass family and Madame Bones. The Ministry of Magic might deny his existence but many of the department heads were already his loyal devotees.

There was one problem with this picture. Voldemort had no power to strip magic. Before the Potter incident, he had not even imagined it possible. Questioning Lucius Malfoy under the cruciatus offered no help as the blonde ponce had no idea how Draco acquired the potion. Lucius had been trafficking in faerie magical items merely to add to the galleons in his vault. The obtuse blond wizard had never thought about the consequences of a separate magic system, one that wizards didn't understand.

Voldemort feared death, but now he feared something else - the loss of magic. Voldemort had spent decades exploring the boundaries of knowledge, the limits of the Dark Arts. If he lost his magic to faerie potion, he would be at the mercy of his enemies and his followers. Would the horcruxes still work for him then? Would he be immortal and magicless, stuck in an inescapable prison or tortured for eternity? Even death would be preferable to such a fate.

He consider killing Draco but that would not solve the problem. The younger Malfoy had no understanding or ability to brew the potion; he had merely thrown it on Harry Potter, a task anyone could have achieved. Someone, perhaps a powerful faerie lord, had made the potion and manipulated the twit into doing so. And that someone might be plotting against him, even in this minute,

The door rang, and Lucius Malfoy escorted a pompous fat little man, clutching a lime green bowler hat. Voldemort motioned for the Minister of Magic to sit.

"Lord Thingie - I mean Voldemort." Cornelius Fudge stuttered, sweat dripping on his face.

"Minister Fudge, I am pleased to see you respond so promptly. It would be best for Britain if you acceded to my requests."

"About that - I have spoken to the Warden and he will free your associates in Azkaban. And we will be happy to pass laws favoring pure blood wizards. After all, that is how our world should work." Fudge gave a small grin, like the village idiot.

"And what about my third request?" Voldemort asked with no smile in his eyes or face.

"Umm, we have no authority over Hogwarts. As long as Albus Dumbledore is Headmaster, we can not appoint a new one unless there is some crisis at the school." Fudge stammered.

"Well, Minister - it sounds like there will trouble soon then at Hogwarts." Voldemort was surprised that no one really cared that a student died last year at the school. Clearly, more deaths would be required for the board to oust Dumbledore.

Voldemort was eager to strike at Dumbledore for many reasons. He had sworn that the headmaster would regret denying him the Defense Against Dark Arts professorship. That slight had not been forgotten over the last 50 years, as the curse on the position showed. He also needed to impress his followers, new and old, on the terrible consequences of opposing the Dark Lord. He could not steal anyone's magic but he could find other ways to terrify the magical masses. And lastly, Voldemort wanted to consolidate power over Britain by ousting Dumbledore. He feared the might of the fey. If they rose, then he would need to crush the Light quickly so he could defend against their unpredictable and unknown abilities. "Lucius, find Fenrir Greyback. I have a task that requires his talents and tastes." He would control Hogwarts soon.

* * *

Hermione wrapped the midnight black hood and cape tightly around her, as she followed Susan down a long winding corridor in the Defense Against Dark Arts tower. There was a small forgotten building next to the Training Grounds where Rolando Hooch taught flying lessons. Hogwarts was littered with secret rooms, a testament to the fading of magic over the centuries, Once, a thousand witches and wizards had attended the school. Today the number was under three hundred.

Hermione wondered about the wisdom of following Susan into an abandoned tower. She didn't know the bold Hufflepuff witch that well, and was she really certain it was Susan? For a restricted potion, polyjuice was readily available, as Year 2 and Moody had shown. There were also charms that could glamour the hair and face, particularly with dark robes late at night. Before she could ponder this further, Susan opened a door, and the two witches entered.

The room was dark but lit by a dozen candles, distributed in a five pointed star pattern. A silver pentacle was engraved on the floor and at the furthest point of the star a witch with a few strands of blond hairs visible stood. There were three other witches standing in the background. The blonde witch doffed off her hood to show the face of Daphne Greengrass, the Ice Princess of Slytherin. Hermione grabbed her wand instinctively, worried it was a trap.

"Oh, save it, Granger. If we wanted to stun you, we would do it as soon as you entered." Daphne said with a faint sneer.

"You are part of Susan's resistance group?" Hermione asked, surprised.

"Not all Slytherins want to be Death Eaters. We know that the Dark Lord has risen. And we don't want to be slaves or trophies." The blonde Slytherin said.

"Daphne is the best witch at occlumency in our year. She has taught several of the younger Slytherins." Susan said.

"Wait - if she teaches me, does that mean she reads my mind?" Hermione said with a gasp.

"Yes, Granger. I will take your secrets as the price of my lessons." Daphne said, cackling.

"Daphne, stop pretending to be a power hungry prat." Tracey Davis said. "Susan said Hermione was obliviated, and that's why she needs to learn."

Daphne's face burned with anger. "Who did it, Hermione? One of the older wizards or a Fifth Year?"

Hermione decided to trust Susan and Daphne. "I believe it was Headmaster Dumbledore." She said to the audible gasps from the witches. "Last Saturday, I was planning to run away with Harry. The next few hours were wiped away from my memory."

"Your plan was to run away to the Forbidden Forest?" Daphne asked.

"No, we had a different plan. Harry must have improvised at the last minute. I think he went through the Chamber of Secrets." Hermione said. Even Daphne, famed for her icy demeanor, was shocked at that revelation.

"Poor Harry. To escape the castle but die in the Forbidden Forest." Hannah Abbott said.

"I am not sure he is dead." Hermione said. "I know his heart stone was extinguished but that would happen when he lost his magic. The Potter family stone might still recognize him."

"Why would the family stone recognize Potter if he had no magic?" Susan asked.

"The Gringott's family stones are based on faerie magic. It is very different from wizard magic." a dreamy voice said.

"Maybe." Daphne said. "Well Granger, it seems you have interesting secrets. You know about us. Will you swear to join our coven?"

"Who is in your group?" Hermione asked.

"Witches that won't bow to either Dumbledore or the Dark Lord. Luna sees a dangerous future with many threats looming. We have sworn to look out for each other."

"I will, but I need to learn occlumency so I don't betray your confidence. And if Harry is alive, I will help him, no matter what the coven does." Hermione said.

Daphne looked at the four other witches in the room who nodded in return. "That is acceptable. Welcome Hermione Granger to our coven." Susan and Hannah gave Hermione a quick hug while Daphne rolled her eyes. "Now, Granger - clear your mind. **Legilimens**."

* * *

On the pitch, Draco Malfoy buzzed the goal posts on his Nimbus 2001, pointedly ignoring Graham Montague's instructions. The burly Slytherin might be quidditch captain but Draco knew that Montague would never dare punish a Malfoy. Since the events of last weekend, Malfoy's star had ascended at Hogwarts. Students were afraid he could curse their magic, and Draco saw no reason to correct them. In fact, his minions, Victor Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, to spread rumors of his alleged hexing powers far and wide. He enjoyed how others cowered and cringed in his presence.

The Dark Lord's deepening shadow had reached Hogwarts, although in whispers only. Draco longed for the day when the purebloods would forced to swear allegiance publicly. His father's exalted position would mean that Draco would be the King of Hogwarts in all but name. That would be a great day - he wondered if he would banish the muggleborn or merely force them to serve as human house elves. As for the blood traitors, he would enjoy humiliating them. A new world was rising, one where magical power would reign supreme.

Draco could not have known how right he was. Outside the pitch, invisible to the eye, two tall and thin hunters watched the Slytherin team. They looked like albinos but instead of red eyes, they had deep black eyes and even the iris was purest black. Their slightly pointed ears betrayed their faerie nature but a casual observer would have thought them human. They were handsome in an androgynous way but the black eyes were impossibly old, a clue to the truly alien nature of the Leshay as the most ancient fey besides the Eldest. Their full names were unpronounceable in the human tongue but the Queen of Air and Darkness called them Nix and Nox. One of them held a horn longbow, as tall as he was, and a quiver hung on his belt with a dozen arrows. The other did not even pretend to be mortal, and knew he could summon weapons at a second's notice.

"What an odd game. There are all sorts of balls of different sizes. And poles with rings and other flying things."

"It seems very dull. It would be better if the balls could kill, or they beheaded the losers."

"Perhaps they will - after all, this is only a practice." There was a slight spark of emotion at the possibility of decapitations but otherwise the voices stayed unemotional and uncaring. "There is so little magic here. How can the mortals stand this world?"

"The Queen will change all that and the First World will rise again. But we must find the."

The fey with the bow pointed at the blond Slytherin seeker. "That boy. I can smell the faerie magic. Even days after, the fragrance stands out in this magical desert."

"She will be pleased. Shall we bring him back with us? Does he need to be alive? Or can we skin him first before we leave." There was no change in tone in the hunter's voice.

"No. We must observe. The boy may know nothing. But if he is contacted again…."

The two hunters sat down, utterly bored with this mundane task in this mundane world. They were not impressed by wizards on brooms or little sticks spatting out spells. The magic of the First World was more abstruse and arcane. But no amount of tedium would make them return before their task was complete. Even the Leshay feared the wrath of their Queen.

* * *

Harry rested back in his tent, munching on pumpkin pasties. Every morning, he woke up and tested out his new form. He exercised his strength, his speed and his endurance, pushing himself to the limit. He knew he could not do so in the muggle world. If a unicorn was reported in London, the wizards would certainly hear.

He was strong and fast but he had known that even before the tussle with Bane. He could do a primitive apparition but only over short distances. He could sense good and evil and pass without a trace through the most difficult terrain effortlessly, quite helpful in the Forest. His horn could heal as well although he had no desire to injure himself to test that. Harry practiced shifting quickly from human to unicorn and back. It was not easy - and at times he preferred to be a unicorn. He felt a sense of peace as an unicorn that he never had before. It would be easy to stay in that form, and not worry about the troubles of the magical world.

Harry sighed. He was still human. He missed his life at Hogwarts. He knew that without magic, he might never return to the castle and he regretted the loss of his friends. He checked the Marauder's Map often, looking for Hermione. Had she betrayed him? Or had she been somehow influenced? The last few days, he saw her meeting several other witches, including Daphne Greengrass and Susan Bones. He was glad that she had new friends but part of him wondered if she would forget him.

Harry put away the map and pulled out a textbook, **Ancient Runes Made Easy**. Hermione finished this book in second year, even before her first class. Harry chuckled - he was now only three years behind her. Harry should have checked the other side of the castle. There, two red dots met - D. Umbridge and F. Greyback. If Harry was there as a unicorn, he would have uncovered the sinister plans of the foul witch and savage werewolf.


	5. The Bloody Halloween

**The Bloody Halloween**

Dolores Umbridge sipped tea from her white chintz cup decorated with tiny green vines and pink and purple flowers. Looking up at her from the inside of the cup was a gray skull, sockets bare, but even that was adorned with a bright pink rose. Umbridge had that cup long before Voldemort directed Lucius Malfoy to meet with Cornelius Fudge. She merely liked the idea of death hiding behind a kitschy exterior.

Umbridge's office was the epitome of kitsch. Behind her wooden desk, next to garish pink curtains, were two dozen schmaltzy plates, all decorated with fluffy kitchens in different poses and shades but with a color scheme of white, black and pink throughout. Umbridge adored porcelain kittens but she hated cleaning up after hairballs and disgusting waste. As she knew from her childhood, even a cute kitten became a brutish cat. It was far better that her pet drowned "accidentally" than become a common and ill bred animal.

That was Umbridge's opinion about children. Most were horrid little creatures, always underfoot, and making a nuisance of themselves. Students shouldn't be heard or seen by adults, Umbridge thought. They should merely follow orders and obey authority without questions or complaints. Only a few children, well placed pure bloods whose parents supported the Ministry, were redeemable. As for the rest, they needed to be beaten into shape or they could be useful tools, in her climb to greater and greater power.

Umbridge knew what people whispered about her and frankly, she could care less. It hardly mattered that others, including the Headmaster and all the teachers, knew that she loathed children. She wasn't the brightest witch or the most powerful. She started life with few connections, and most of those were self manufactured. And look at her now - she was one step away from becoming Headmistress of Hogwarts. She had a singular gift that others couldn't grasp. Umbridge could find any weakness - an old scab, a mental scar - and pick at it until it bled. And her eyes were focused on Albus Dumbledore or rather, how he ran Hogwarts.

There was a hesitant knock at the door, and after a girlish "Come in" rang out, a witch with curly reddish blonde hair and freckles walked in. Marietta Edgecombe had been warned not to attract Umbridge's attention if at all possible but she could not ignore the summons.

"You called for me, Madam Umbridge?" Marietta said, sitting nervously in the chair.

"Ah, yes Marietta." Umbridge put down her cup and stood up on her short stubby legs. She walked around the anxious witch and peered closely at her hair. "Fine hair you have." Umbridge grabbed some of the reddish strands with her stubby fingers.

"You are hurting me, Professor Umbridge." Marietta whimpered.

Dolores chortled. "Just making sure it is yours. After all, Marietta, your mother Azelma's hair is black. And your father's hair, before he died, was brown. So how did you get red blond hair?"

'I don't know." Marietta replied.

Dolores lowered her head a little, so her face was inches away from the cringing student. "I will tell you how. Your mother ran away in the First Wizard War. She fled to the muggle world and there, she got pregnant like a scarlet woman. You are no pureblood. You are even lower than a muggleborn - your father was some nameless muggle. And your mum has lied all her life about it, hasn't she? HASN'T SHE?"

Marietta sobbed, although it was unclear whether it is from shame or the Toad's tearing at her curly locks.

"What do you think will happen to your mum if everyone at the Ministry finds out? Hmmm?" Umbridge had a warm smile on her broad squarish face. She released Marietta's hair, having made her point firmly. "There, there - Marietta. You know what is important now - doing everything Professor Umbridge tells you." The young witch nodded, sniffing to stop the flow of tears from her face.

* * *

Umbridge sat back in her chair and poured herself more tea. She could save the Black Quill for more troublesome students. "Tell me about the strange things that have happened at the school the last four years. Anything odd and unusual, especially if Harry Potter is involved. " As Marietta went on and on about trolls, bizarre quidditch games, Heirs of Slytherin, rogue bludgers and dementors, Dolores Umbridge's eyes gleamed brightly at what she heard.

Umbridge waddled down to the dungeons. It was unusual for teachers to interfere with individual Houses but Dolores couldn't help herself. She had always found her old house to be the shining exemplar, full of well connected witches and wizards who came from the right families. All those strapping Slytherin lads breeding well behaved pureblood heirs on demure society witches - that was how the world should be.

She entered the Slytherin Common Room. The Upper Year students relaxed near the end of the week, and she saw even a few Sixth and Seven years paying court to a strutting Draco Malfoy, surrounded by his oafish posse. The young blond prince was very much like his father - a great credit to the magical world.

"HEM, HEM." The students quieted down immediately. "I have an announcement of great portent to make. I, Dolores Umbridge, with the full support of the Ministry of Magic, am forming an Inquisitorial Squad to enforce proper behavior at Hogwarts."

"I am always eager to support the Ministry." Draco puffed up. "What does the Squad do?"

"Members of the squad will be able to take away points for unseemly behavior - like foolish antics, loud horseplay, or disrespect to the members of the Squad." Umbridge announced.

"I can take points off Weasley for being a Blood Traitor?" Draco cried. "Will I also get a shiny badge for that?"

"Of course. It would be good for all the Prefects to be able to enforce law and order at Hogwarts." Umbridge declared. "Of course, prefects only of Slytherin House. After all, we don't want to be polluted by the ideas of the muggle lovers or nerds anyone who believes in hard work and fair play."

"If the Squad is only Slytherin, won't that lead to fighting with the other Houses? And wouldn't their Heads reverse any point loss?" Daphne Greengrass said.

Umbridge grimaced that anyone, let alone a mere witch, would question her plan. "The other Heads will do no such thing. They will realize that their children must follow the rules. No sloppy dress, or silly shenanigans or puerile pranks. The Inquisitorial Squad will command respect. Everyone will behave or ELSE."

Several burly wizards signed up, eager for a chance to snipe back at rivals in other houses. Draco Malfoy, escorted by Lout One and Lout 2, was at the front of the pack. Daphne Greengrass turned away, followed by Tracey Davis and many other Slytherin witches. Pansy Parkinson was the only girl who joined the Squad. Dolores Umbridge glared at the retreating Greengrass Heir. The arrogant witch had refused her generous offer. Worse, Greengrass's influence was leading other purebloods astray. She would pay for her insolence.

* * *

At the Gryffindor table that evening, the only topic of discussion was quidditch. Unhappy with the team's recent practices, Angelina Johnson had called for tryouts for every single position, hoping to add a new seeker and several reserve chasers and beaters. Ron Weasley, grumbling that his Firebolt had been lost, planned to try out for Keeper. McLaggen had beat him out the first time, but in the meantime, the churlish sixth year antagonized every female Chaser, through his constant leering in the lockers and churlish yelling on the pitch. Cormac Mclaggen thought he was Merlin's gift to witches, although the Flying Foxes certainly disagreed.

"Oi, Herms - could you cast a confundus spell on McLaggen tomorrow at the practice?" Ron said over the din of chewing two turkey drumsticks in both hands.

"What? Why on Earth would I confund McLaggen?" Hermione said.

"Because that is what mates do for each other. Break the rules by using mind altering spells and then not giving a rat's ass about it. What's the big deal about compulsion and confundus? Cormac won't even know." Ron said.

Hermione shuddered when she thought about the compulsion spell used on her. If it were not for her mum's letter and packing the books, she might have never known. "Ron, Quidditch is just a game. Yes, it can be fun. But it doesn't matter. OWLs are important to your future." Hermione said.

"Hermione, you are so naive. Nobody cares about OWLs in the real world. The only thing that matters is who you know." Ron said, as he waggled the half eaten giant turkey leg at the bewildered muggleborn.

"What? And what does that have to do with quidditch?" Hermione asked.

Ron grinned, gravy stains and bits of white meat showing throwing through the gaps of the teeth. "I am going to be the best keeper ever. League champion and the star of the Chudley Cannons! And when I am the most important player in the English team, everyone will be begging to be my friend. Ronald Weasley, quidditch star." Ron puffed up, imagining all the swooning witches throwing chocolates, panties, and flowers at his victorious feet.

Hermione refrained from pointing out that the best keeper ever would not worry about losing a tryout to McLaggen. Before she could reply, a few other Gryffindors overheard Ron's rants.

"OI, Weasley, that is not possible." Seamus Finnegan yelled, with Dean and a few other lads following the exchange.

"What do you mean, you tosser?" Ron snapped back.

"You can be a champion or you can play on the Chudley Cannons. You can't do both." Seamus roared. The other wizards chortled at the reminder of the Chudley Cannons record of zero wins and sixteen losses this season.

"What do you know about the victorious history of the mighty Cannons?" Ron fumed.

"More than you apparently." Seamus replied.

* * *

At a motion from a certain blonde witch passing the table, Hermione left the bickering wizards behind. Well, Ron Weasley was bickering. The rest of Gryffindor found his unblinking devotion to the Cannons comical but a mite pathetic. Hermione hadn't told anyone about her meetings with the Ice Princess of Slytherin. Daphne Greengrass was secretive to the point of paranoia. She was fond of saying what your enemies don't know can't help them.

The blonde witch chose a different meeting place for each of their four lessons to date. This time, it was near the Defense Against Dark Arts classroom. With Umbridge refusing to allow anyone to cast spells, the rooms typically used for practice were deserted. Hermione noticed both Tracey Davis and Susan Bones following at a distance.

When the four witches were together in the room, Daphne cast a complex privacy charm with Tracey Davis kept watch at the door. After Daphne finished, she turned to an impatient Susan. "Umbridge is starting an Inquisitorial Squad to keep order at Hogwarts. It is going to be all Slytherin students, with Draco and a bunch of nitwits leading the pack."

"An Inquisitorial Squad? About what?" Susan asked.

"They are going to deduct points over things like sloppy school dress, pranking, bad manners." Tracey said.

"Pranking?" a puzzled Hermione said. "Even Professor Snape can't stop pranking. If Draco tries to take points away from the Weasley Twins, it will lead to retaliation."

Daphne nodded. "Susan, how will the Hufflepuffs react if Warrington and Bletchley try to teach them their place?"

The red headed witch blanched. "Not well - The Puffs are an easy-going bunch but when they get angry, they hold a grudge."

"This is going to cause a lot of tension, maybe even open fighting. It will make the other houses despise the Slytherins even more. How can Umbridge not realize that?" Hermione asked.

Daphne Greengrass's eyes narrowed. "Of course. Umbridge is not a fool. She knows that there will be a lot of sniping. She wants feuding at Hogwarts." Daphne tightened the grip on her wand slightly, the only sign of her growing concern. "But why? What is her game?

* * *

In the Forbidden Forest, Harry Potter stretched his arms after a morning of vigorous exercise. He had run a dozen miles in an easy loop. There may have been dangerous creatures in the forest but as a massive black unicorn, Harry had little fear. He was more than a match for even a herd of thestrals or hippogriffs, and could outrun any other beast. Harry had even glimpsed the abandoned Ford Anglia cruising around near the creek. He chuckled at the silliness three years ago, when he should have simply waited to catch a floo to Hogwarts.

Harry touched the lightning bolt scar over his right eye. In the seven days that had passed since his arrival in the Forest, he had thought a great deal about the words of the Unicorn Queen. Her touch had unleashed something - memories, dreams, flashbacks. Tom Riddle's past had been laid bare - the passion to learn magic, the hunger to better himself, the crimes committed as Riddle embarked on his path. A kindly old lady murdered for a Cup and a Locket, an inbred uncle framed for three killings. The most common vision was the orphanage, a gothic building with high railings and a cast iron gate, church-like with its run-down stained glass windows, and high bell tower. He dreaded returning to the orphanage every summer, with its genteel shabbiness and simplistic attempts to teach morality to children. He had grown up without any inkling of love - for what had happened to his wretched mother who had loved a muggle? She had been abandoned like trash, left to die at Wool's Orphanage. In his dreams, he saw her death at his hands - the very first murder he committed. He was the reason his mother died, and the Orphanage a continual reminder of that truth.

Harry knew that these were Riddle's memories, yet he could not help his sense of anger and rage. Others had grown up in happy homes - yet Riddle had been left at the mercy of others, just like Harry. Harry could not help but dwell on the similarities between the two. They were both orphans, half bloods, abandoned by the world. They spoke parseltongue and despite his lackadaisical approach to magic, were clearly above average in magical power. Harry suspected that in a spell battle, he could duel the teenage Riddle to a draw - but that was a fool's dream. He had lost his magic and had no expectation of its return. The lightning bolt also reminded him of a conundrum - what did they know and when did they know it? He had been under Nurse Pomfrey's care half a dozen times in the last four years. How could she not have detected dark magic in his scar? She had scanned him many times. And Dumbledore. Ron Weasley had told him endlessly about the Headmaster's powers and wisdom. According to the red head, without the great Dumbledore, the Dark Side would have easily won. Dumbledore was the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared, or so the Weasleys parroted. If so, how could the all knowing Headmaster not have suspected that a piece of Voldemort was stuck in his scar? And if he knew, why did he not tell Harry or better yet, try to remove it? The last question confused Harry even more. In June, he had faced Voldemort in the Little Hangleton Graveyard. How could Voldemort not recognize a piece of himself in the scar? The wizard had gone on a monologue about his vast knowledge of magic - greater than any wizard ever -and yet the supposed master of Dark Arts couldn't even detect a slice of his soul.

Harry had an incredible headache. He wondered how Hermione could stand thinking for hours and hours. He shifted back to his unicorn form. The tent was large enough even for a seven foot tall unicorn. He trotted over to his desk where the book **Numerology and Grammatica** stood open to the fourth chapter. Harry grabbed a quill with his mouth and began the worksheet on the application of Euclidean geometry to simple runic circles, while occasionally taking bites from an apple. It was an absurd picture - a giant black unicorn working on mathematic exercises in a magical tent. Somehow, it suited the new Harry just fine.

* * *

That weekend, several unhappy professors met at the Headmaster's Office following an orgy of point deductions in the Great Hall that evening. Rather than engage in a public screaming match, Minerva McGonagall had agreed to allow Dumbledore to mediate between her and Severus Snape. FIlius Flitwick and Pomona Sprout also attended, given clashes between their Houses and the Inquisitorial Squad over the last few days. None of the Heads of Houses were happy that a smirking Umbridge was also present.

"Severus - you cannot fine George and Fred Weasley five hundred points." McGonagall began.

"Those hooligans pushed Graham Montague into a Vanishing Cabinet." Snape retorted.

"For docking them fifty points for being twins!"

"Draco Malfoy had to rescue him from a toilet. He apparated there by accident, trying to escape. He could have drowned or lost an arm or a leg from being splinched." Snape snapped back.

"Now, now. Boys will be boys. The Weasley twins are merely a little boisterous." Dumbledore chuckled. "What trouble could ever come from having a Vanishing Cabinet at Hogwarts? It is not like Death Eaters will conveniently use them to invade the school."

'That is not the point, Albus." McGonagall stared stonily at Umbridge. "This Inquisitorial Squad is causing major trouble. We have to had to break up multiple fights the last few days." The Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff Heads nodded in agreement."

"Only because Slytherins have been attacked. Pansy Parkinson was cursed with antlers on her head. Cassius Warrington was coated in maple syrup and then covered in cereal and dumped in milk." Snape said.

"Where did they get a bowl of milk large enough?" Dumbledore asked mildly.

"Hem, Hem." The other teachers in the room looked at the croaking witch in pink. "HEM, HEM, HEM."

"Yes, Madame Umbridge?" Dumbledore said.

"I have a proposal that will solve our problems." Umbridge began.

"The solution is simple. Ban the Inquisitorial Squad. Stop having students discipline other students." McGonagall cried. The other three Heads of House nodded in agreement.

Umbridge proceeded, ignoring the other irate witches and wizards. "Students are brandishing their wands against each other. Hogwarts has taught them terrible habits - resorting to violence and destructive behavior rather than looking to the authorities for proper guidance. I propose that we forbid the use of wands outside the classroom and their dormitories. Anyone who casts a hex or a charm will serve detention immediately."

"Wand use in the halls is already not permitted." Flitwick said.

"Then we should enforce it, and force all students to follow the rules." Umbridge said sweetly.

"That sounds like a reasonable compromise, certainly worth trying. I will announce it to the children tomorrow morning." Dumbledore said, missing the glee on Umbridge's face.

* * *

Dawn broke over Hogwarts on October 31. Hermione woke up, feeling rather glum on this holiday. It would be the first Halloween she spent at Hogwarts without her best friend. The castle was decorated cheerfully as ever but Hermione found the festivities a touch odious. The only reason wizards could celebrate Halloween was Harry Potter's defeat of the Dark Lord fourteen years ago. Hermione thought of the troubles in more recent years - the troll, the Chamber of Secrets, Sirius Black and the Goblet of Fire. The other students at Hogwarts did not truly know what they owed him. Without magic though, Harry Potter was forgotten and his name never mentioned at Hogwarts, like a taboo. He was remembered only in conversations with the other witches of the coven.

Despite their vast differences, Hermione developed a pleasant, almost sisterly, camaraderie with the other witches. Luna was odd but delightful and Susan was brave and thoughtful. Even the Slytherins had warmed up to her. Hermione had learned a great deal from the occlumency lessons with Daphne Greengrass. Behind the Ice Princess' cold and calculating exterior was a friendly but extremely cunning mind, navigating a precarious position as a pureblood who could not openly oppose the Death Eaters. Daphne said little but hinted much, and Hermione realized there was a great deal that books did not teach about magical history. Much ancient lore had been passed down orally from witch to witch, and Hermione suspected, greatly distorted by word of mouth over generations. There were secrets lost long before Hogwarts was founded and magic that defied explanation - like how a potion could take away a wizard's magic. Despite hours of research, Hermione could not find a single reference to that in any library book.

Hermione walked down to breakfast in the Great Hall. Even though the big game against Slytherin was in the afternoon, Ronald and Ginny Weasley were dressed in their full Gryffindor uniforms, and Ron even wore a battered leather helmet. The youngest Weasley boy had made the team but only after McLaggen groped Angelina Johnson, claiming that he had been invited to the showers by Alicia Spinnet. The reaction of the three Flying Foxes had been furious and McLaggen had not been seen near the pitch or the Gryffindor common room for two weeks now.

Tensions between the Gryffindors and the Slytherins ran high but there was no open fighting. To the surprise of many, the Inquisitorial Squad, while still annoying prats, had obeyed the new educational edict - no wand usage outside of class or dorms. Hermione heard a rumor that Umbridge had used Compulsion spells and even threatened the **Crucio** to get her Squad to behave. Surely, that could not be true. What school would permit a teacher that tortured students?

As Hermione walked away after finishing breakfast, Angelina Johnson was making a rousing speech to the team. "We don't need to hex Malfoy and his twits. We will settle it on the pitch!" Hermione smiled at the sixth year's enthusiasm. She hoped the four Weasleys and the Flying Foxes could back up their words.

* * *

Hermione eased herself into her seat behind her fellow Fifth Year witches, Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil. The entire pitch was decorated in alternate colors : the scarlet and gold of Gryffindor and the silver and green of the Slytherin, and the stands were full of warming charms cast by teachers to ward off the chill of late autumn. Hermione may have not shared the rabid enthusiasm for quidditch of some, i.e. the Weasleys, but she did appreciate the game. It was a great outlet for student energy and unified both purebloods and muggleborns in these turbulent times. She still preferred the beloved library but she would enjoy seeing the Slytherins taken down a peg, particularly in a fair game without any hexing.

Luna Lovegood sat down next to her. Luna had chosen to cheer the Gryffindors on with a home-made lion's head hat. The lion's paws were perched over the brim of the red hat and the ludicrous beast appeared to be eating her head. When Luna tapped the hat with the wand, the lion released an extremely realistic roar, startling Lavender and Parvati. The two witches turned, their faces painted scarlet and gold, and chuckled, giving Luna two thumbs up for her rather original headgear. The Gryffindor students were buzzing excitedly, eager for play to start and to see whether this team could match the championship squad two years ago, when Oliver Wood played his last game as Keeper. Hermione surreptitiously took out a book, Advanced Runes Made Easy. Quidditch games were like cricket - they could last forever until the seeker caught the golden snitch.

Hermione looked up from an interesting chapter on Sumerian runes as boos rained down on the pitch from the Gryffindor stand. The game was 70 to 20, and her housemates were none too pleased at that Ronald, the greatest keeper ever, had scored an own goal by mishandling the quaffle. Hermione thought the outraged remarks by Lee Jordan threatening all sorts of bodily harm to the red headed keeper a bit much. After all, whoever caught the snitch would still win. Perhaps in matches of great skill between professional teams, the chasers and team defense was more important but in every game at Hogwarts, the seeker had always determined the winner. Ron's matador defense would be forgotten if Ginny caught the snitch - even if the Slytherins were happily chanting singing "Weasley is our King - He lets in everything."

When Hooch blew the whistle, the play began on the Gryffindor side. Fred and George Weasley simultaneously hit both bludgers toward Draco Malfoy when suddenly the balls swerved. The first bludger zoomed across the field into the Slytherin stands. Screams could be heard far away but she had something else on her mind - the second bludger. The ball had arced backwards and was hovering above the Gryffindor side. Then in a blink of an eye, it dove down, accelerating at insane speed as it rushed straight at Hermione.

Luna Lovegood grabbed at the bushy haired muggleborn and shoved both of them to the ground. Luna's lion cowered in fear as the lost hat was nearly eviscerated by the rogue bludger. The jet black ball slammed into the railings and the stand groaned under the impact. Hermione peaked her head up, only to see the girders of the stadium shatter as the bludger rose again in the sky. The bludger spun in mid air, changing directions, and then darted at Hermione again.

Hermione dropped down as the bludger whistled past them, nearly ruffling her bushy hair. She could hear Lee Jordan's commentary continue - "Ooh, another bad mix up by the Gryffindor defense and the Slytherins have scored again." Meanwhile, the two rogue bludgers wreaked havoc in the stands. Hermione was astounded at the indifference of the crowd, still focused on the pitch. She understood that Madam Hooch had to referee the game from her broom. But what about the other adults? Why didn't Professor McGonagall or Headmaster Dumbledore act?

"Why can't they pause this game or impound the bludgers?" Hermione yelled as she and Luna took out their wands.

Lavender Brown cowered besides her. "You can't magically interfere with the snitch, quaffle or bludgers after the game starts. It would be an automatic forfeit." The blonde witch wailed.

Hermione recalled the incident from second year. Even though the bludger had malfunctioned, no one had done anything. No teacher cared why Harry's arm had been broken, simply chalking it up to quidditch, as if it was normal for a twelve year old to almost die in midair. After Harry had healed, the bludger had been never mentioned again. The basilisk had stunned Colin Creevey that night, diverting the school's fickle attention, but the teachers had never investigated. Hermione had found out from Harry that it was Dobby, but he had never told McGonagall or Dumbledore. So why had no one cared?

Hermione cast a Finite** Incantatem**, hoping to stop the bludger. The ball swerved and the purple ray harmlessly shot into the sky. The witches around her also took their wands out with Luna casting a **Protego**. The black ball rammed the shield, shattering the silver wall with a loud thud. Lavender and Parvati shook with fear, while the sprightly Ravenclaw turned to keep her wand pointed at the menacing Bludger.

Hermione read Kennilworthy Whisp's **Quidditch Through the Ages i**n the first year before the first game. The bludger was a jet black ball, nearly a foot in diameter, made of iron. It was hollow, but the iron ball still weighed north of 20 pounds. Harry had told her last year that the Firebolt was three times as fast as a bludger. For Harry, that meant the bludger was slow and could be easily dodged in the air. But a twenty pound iron object zooming at fifty miles an hour - that would do a lot of damage.

"Lavender, Parvati. We all need to cast a **protego ** to protect ourselves." Hermione cried.

"But we will get in trouble." Parvati gasped.

"We are already in trouble." Hermione said, pointing at the black ball in the air. The witches cast several **Protegos** and the bludger bounced off them like a pinball as the shields shattered. Hermione was dimly aware that the game was still going on, from the crowd's roar, and that there was no disturbance in the Slytherin stands. That meant the first bludger had been neutralized. She found out how when a red haired witch wearing yellow and brown rushed over.

"Use an **Incarcerous** spell." Susan Bones yelled.

Hermione nodded, and the three Gryffindor witches and Luna conjured thick ropes, wrestling the ball to the ground. The Bludger gave a terrific fight but eventually the weight of the chains carried the day. Hermione was still gasping for air when a pink clad witch waddled over. "Miss Granger, Miss Lovegood, Miss Patil, Miss Brown - Detention. Due to your tampering with the bludger, the Gryffindor team is automatically disqualified." Umbridge said with glee.

* * *

That night, there was no party in the somber Gryffindor common room as Hermione and the two other witches left for detention. Hermione's appeal to Professor McGonagall had been denied as the older witch told her unhappily that much as she wanted to, she could not interfere with another teacher's punishment due to centuries of tradition. Hermione refrained from retorting whether tradition also meant bludgers charmed to attack students, and teachers who did absolutely nothing to help.

There were seven witches slated for detention. Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis had been attacked by the other bludger, and with Susan Bone's help, had brought it down. Professor Sprout had argued that Susan had merely tried to help other witches but Umbridge refused to excuse the Hufflepuff. Luna was the only Ravenclaw there, and the two other Gryffindors stood apart from Hermione, hoping to escape Umbridge's attention.

"Hem, HEM, HEM." Umbridge cleared her throat the entrance to the Great Hall. "Please hand over your wands so there will be no repeat of your disgraceful rule breaking ways." The short fat witch collected their wands. "For detention, we are going to the Forbidden Forest to collect mistletoe under the full moon."

"The Forest is forbidden for a reason. Going there without our wands is dangerous." Susan Bones said heatedly.

Umbridge simply dismissed her. "Others have assigned it as punishment, including the sainted Mrs. McGonagall. Besides, I will be with you, and as a licensed Defense Against Dark Arts teacher, you will all be safe under my authority - as long as I am with you." she tittered. Hermione raised her hand. "Yes, Miss Granger?"

"How can we collect mistletoe - we have no wands or any way to cut them down from the trees?" Hermione asked.

"Tut, tut - you should have thought about that before breaking the rules. Now, march." Umbridge snarled, as she opened the great doors. The full moon shone down from the night sky and Umbridge eagerly waited for the baying of wolves. That would be the signal for Umbridge to leave the witches to the tender mercies of Greyback's pack.

* * *

Harry felt it even before he heard the howls that broke the night. Over the last few hours, he had picked up a faint trace that something new, something malevolent had come to the forest - intruders in his domain. His recurring dreams of Voldemort and his frequent shifts into his unicorn form had sharpened his sense of evil, and the cry of the wolves combined with the full blood red moon to make an obvious clue : werewolves.

In his exploration, Harry had encountered werewolves before but only transients, drifters who subsisted on rabbits, goats and the occasional deer. They were no danger to Hogwarts and other denizens of the Forest. This was different - an entire pack marking their territory. Harry quickly checked the Marauder's Map. He saw the red dot of Umbridge swiftly retreating to the castle, leaving behind a group of dots, including a H. Granger. He saw also seven others in a semi circle - with names like Greyback and Scabior rushing toward Hermione and her fellow students. Fury and anger surged through him, as he transformed into a huge black stallion. He snorted, indignant that anyone would dare defile his Forest or endanger his best friend. A great and terrible rage seized him, almost to the point of madness, and the unicorn galloped hard to the castle many miles away.

Harry burst into a clearing, thick with yew trees, and saw several werewolves chasing their prey. One had caught a blond witch - Lavender Brown, Harry briefly registered - and was in the midst of tearing her clothes off, while savaging her pale throat with sharp fangs. His back was turned, the werewolf focused on enjoying his prize. Harry would never remember making any conscious decision.

In a matter of seconds, Harry closed the distance. At five feet, he lowered his shoulder. The ivory horn ripped through the beast's back, and Harry jerked upwards, the point cutting through the spine and exiting the neck. The werewolf's head dangled like the Gryffindor House Ghost, almost severed from a hirsute body. Harry leaped forward and his hoofs connected with skull with tremendous force. When he landed, he kicked out his back legs, and heard ribs shatter, the broken bones jutting out of the back of another dying body.

Harry kept moving, his peripheral vision picking up another three werewolves. The pack realized too late that it was not facing helpless pubescent witches, ready to be bred and turned. In the blink of an eye, Harry thrust his horn through the stomach of a beast, viciously twisting the ivory corkscrew. The werewolf dropped the dark haired witch in its paws, clutched at its belly, trying vainly to keep its entrails from leaking out. Harry then trampled another from behind, as the werewolf attempted to flee. Harry's front hoofs smashed against the beast's neck before both sets of legs stomped with all of his nearly one ton weight. The third werewolf tried to keep a blond witch between it and the remorseless foe but Luna Lovegood was too small to give any true cover. Harry stabbed with his horn at the creature, and blood gushed from wounds in the crippled legs. Harry finished by kicking the prone werewolf in the neck, and he heard a satisfying crack, before the body jerked and went still.

"Stop!" A dirty grey haired man with slicked back hair in a filthy pony tail cried. His pointed teeth and his long yellow nails betrayed his bestial nature as he held a squirming Hermione Granger by the arms. The man wore the dark dress of a Death Eater, but for some odd reason, had the tight robes tailored so his brawny chest was exposed like a preening body builder. Harry snorted. This scum might think he was an apex predator but delusions hardly mattered. Harry left the broken bodies behind and trotted forward.

"I will gut her, I swear it." Fenrir yelled with false bravado, "I will take a bite of her." Fenrir tightened his grip on the muggleborn and Hermione cried with pain as the nails bit into her skin. The other witches watched, mesmerized at the confrontation.

The unicorn chuckled, and then flashed, dimensionally jumping and thrusting cleanly through the back of Greyback's head, the bloody point of the horn exiting an open toothy mouth. For a second, Greyback's eyes registered shock, but then went dead forever. Harry pulled back, and the most feared werewolf in Britain sagged to the ground, like a puppet whose strings were cut.

* * *

The brown haired witch swung around, looking with wonder at the giant black unicorn. "Harry!" she shouted, embracing him around the neck. He was far too large for a proper hug but Harry nuzzled her with his nose, his blood lust diminishing. It did not surprise him that Hermione had recognized him. The angry lightning bolt scar and his emerald green eyes were clear hints to his true identity. The other witches approached carefully, and judging from the many cuts, rips and bruises, Harry could see that he had almost been too late.

"I wanted to leave with you, Harry. Please believe me." Hermione said.

Harry nudged her away gently, and pointed with his right hoof at his blood encrusted horn. The perplexed witch stopped, unsure of what to do.

"He wants us to clean his horn." Luna said sagely, brushing the thick black mane.

"We don't have our wands though, so no **Scourgify** charm." Daphne said as she inspected the powerful magical beast in front of them. She paid great attention to the scar over the right eye.

Susan tore off a strip of her cloak. The other witches, except for a badly hurt Lavender Brown, followed suit and in a moment, the horn gleamed white again, a contrast to the dark blood on the face and hooves.

Harry dipped his head down, and cut his right foreleg. The witches gaped as thick silvery blood began to flow. Harry trotted over to Lavender and placed the right leg next to the sitting witch.

"He wants you to drink." an awed Parvati Patil said.

"But… won't that curse me forever?" a battered Lavender asked the bushy haired muggleborn.

"You and Tracey both got bitten." Daphne pointed to the deep gash from her right shoulder to throat. "The blood might save you from turning into a werewolf."

"Lavender, he is giving you the blood of his own free will. I don't think you will be cursed." Hermione cried.

The blonde witch raised her head to the silver drops of blood. In a flash, Lavender began to heal. She shone with a golden light as the wounds disappeared. The unicorn beckoned to the dark haired Slytherin. Tracey Davis hesitated at first but then strode up and sucked gently. The bite at her neck from Scabior vanished and she stood up as if she had never been injured. Each of the witches repeated the act, and then it was Hermione's turn.

"Harry, I wasn't hurt that much. Just a few claw marks here but they are quite shallow." The witch said. The giant black unicorn merely kept his right leg raised. Hermione finally drank. She felt enormous power rush into her, and she had never felt stronger or more alive. The blood hummed with vitality and Hermione surreptitiously took a drop, to place it in her beaded bag to analyze. The black unicorn looked at her with a hint of wry amusement, and Hermione blushed.

The footsteps of approaching witches and wizards could be heard in the clearing. The black unicorn touched again his leg with the horn, healing the cut completely. The fantastic beast turned away from the castle and after a brief farewell from the witches, galloped off. When Headmaster Dumbledore and the four Heads of Houses came, they did not see the black unicorn. Instead, they encountered a terrible scene - many, many bodies caught somewhere between wolf and man, all bearing ghastly and hideous injuries. The clearing was soaked in blood, except for the seven uninjured witches who ignored the barrage of questions, led by a Susan Bones who demanded to speak to the DMLE first. As the teachers and students walked back to Hogwarts, they passed the coal black eyes of the two Leshays, brimming with excitement at their discovery.


	6. The Queen of Air and Darkness

**The Queen of Air and Darkness**

Amelia Bones ignored the veiled threats of Fudge's lackeys as her aurors scrambled to interview the witches involved in the Bloody Halloween. Rita Skeeter coined that term when against the wishes of both Dumbledore and the Ministry, Lord Cyrus Greengrass announced over the Wizard Wireless that his heir and six other witches had been nearly murdered and raped in the Forbidden Forest by a pack of werewolves, only to be rescued by a giant black unicorn. The ensuing media frenzy overwhelmed any attempt to suppress the story, and Amelia had unlimited resources to complete an immediate and thorough investigation, even in the late hours of a holiday night.

There was surprisingly little to investigate. A corner of the Nurse's Wing held seven bodies, ranging from full lycanthrope to nearly human, all killed in a brutal fashion. There were vicious corkscrew injuries through lungs, hearts, spine and in the case of Fenrir Greyback - the back of his brain. At least three bodies had bones shattered so completely that the skulls were crushed and the vertebra smashed into pink dust. But there had been no sign of the dark defender, and complete astonishment from teacher, auror, and the Unspeakables alike that a unicorn, a species known far and wide to be peaceful and gentle, was responsible for the carnage.

Amelia looked with admiration at a tight lipped and composed Daphne Greengrass. Even as Susan Bones had demanded the DMLE be notified, Daphne summoned her family house elf, who promptly bought both Cyrus and Esme Greengrass to Hogwarts. Cyrus then used his influence to call a radio press conference, while Esme sent letters by owl to other society wives, wondering if all their sons and daughters were in peril from the incompetence and spite of the Hogwarts teachers. Daphne Greengrass had done what Amos Diggory could not - destroy any possible coverup. There would be no whispers of **confundus** spells, or students lying for attention, or even the notorious Sirius Black, Minister Fudge's preferred scapegoat.

The DMLE had commandeered the Nurse's Wing for their operations. Poppy Pomfrey had taken both Lavender Brown and Tracey Davis to a private room to check for bites but the other five witches were all on cots in the large chamber, speaking with different auror teams. There were other Ministry flunkies and teachers scurrying about, to the dismay of the friends and families of the witches. The Patils and the Browns had both shown up soon after the radio announcement, livid at the Headmaster over the outrageous detention. There was another witch being questioned in the room, who blithely ignored the glares directed at her from all directions.

Dolores Umbridge sat with a bland smile in the corner, treating Emmeline Vance like she was an annoying troublesome student rather than an experienced senior auror. Two sour faced Ministry officials accompanied Umbridge, but Amelia could not tell whether their purpose was to spy for Fudge or offer legal advice. Amelia recused herself from questioning Umbridge. Like the other parents, she wanted to throttle that horrid witch. Madame Bones was careful though. She had to make certain there could be no accusations of bias to maximize the slim chance of nailing Umbridge's hide to the wall.

"Of course, I had no idea whatsoever that there was any danger to those poor witches." Umbridge simpered.

"That is rubbish. You heard the howls and then immediately left." Susan Bones cried.

"I was notified of an urgent message. Naturally I thought it was Cornelius with a very important missive." Umbridge said.

"Minister Fudge denies sending you anything." Vance said.

Umbridge smoothly replied. "Yes, it turned out to a question from Madame Edgecombe on Illegal Floos and how criminals might use them for nefarious purposes."

"You knew the werewolves were waiting. You planned the attack." Parvati Patil yelled. Padma Patil was at her twin's side, and equally irate with the DADA teacher.

"My dear girl, you are hysterical. There are only dead werewolves so who can say what really happened. Perhaps there was no unicorn and the seven of you ambushed the pack." Umbridge blithered her astonishing accusation.

Alastair Moody strode forward, eyeball to eyeball with the frumpy witch. "You think 14 and 15 year old witches can do this?" He pointed to a corpse wrapped in a white shroud. "That fellow's head was crushed from the back so hard that his skull caved in, and his eye sockets exploded. And he was a werewolf under the full moon! How does a witch without a wand do that?"

"No one has ever seen a black unicorn before." Yaxley said dubiously.

"Are you calling my heir a liar?" Asked Cyrus Greengrass.

"Perhaps in the heat of the moment, she was mistaken. The Forbidden Forest is full of monsters." Yaxley replied.

"It wasn't a monster. It was Harry Potter. The unicorn had a lightning bolt scar over his right eye, his emerald green eyes." Hermione said. Umbridge and the Ministry officials rolled their eyes at the muggleborn's outburst.

"That's not possible." Professor McGonagall said. "No one in history has ever had a magical animagus form."

Luna said in her dreamy voice. "They say Merlin could transform into a great red dragon."

"They say many things of Merlin. That he lived backwards in time, and was the son of a demon." McGonagall responded tartly.

"Miss Granger, did you speak with Harry? Did the unicorn say anything that would give a clue?" Dumbledore asked.

"No, he didn't say anything. He just nudged me with his nose." Hermione said.

"Headmaster, the ravings of a child are not proof." Umbridge smugly noted. "In all likelihood, Mister Potter has been eaten by one of the beasts in the Forbidden Forest."

"Perhaps one of the other witches could confirm your story." Dumbledore suggested.

Daphne Greengrass stood up, past her adult minders, Shacklebolt, Jones and Snape. She spoke to the crowd, careful to avoid Dumbledore's and Snape's eyes. "Headmaster, I don't recall a scar on the unicorn's head. Perhaps there was one but everything happened so quickly." Hermione goggled at the Slytherin's blatant lie. "I doubt the other witches saw much either." She said, looking around the room.

"Yes, Headmaster. I didn't see a scar either. But it was very dark." The Hufflepuff witch added. "We were all stunned to see a black unicorn."

Umbridge harrumphed to express her view of their childish tales. Before she could express her thoughts on the impossibility of such a beast, a dazed Poppy Pomfrey came back to the room.

"Albus, it is a miracle. Both Miss Brown and Miss Davis were bitten but the wounds have healed and there is no trace of lycanthropy in their blood - none at all. Those two witches are the picture of health. In fact, their magic is stronger than ever." Nurse Pomfrey cried.

"That is good news." said a relieved Dumbledore.

"It was the blood of the unicorn. It saved them from lycanthropy." Susan said with great satisfaction.

"But unicorn blood is cursed. Did you witches attack the unicorn as well?" Umbridge demanded.

"The unicorn offered us his blood. He knew that it would heal us." Susan replied to the gasps of the older witches and wizards.

"Susan Amelia Bones, did you drink the blood as well?" Madam Bones asked.

"Yes, Auntie. I did - we all did. He gave us his blood as a gift. It was incredible. I am glad I drank his blood." the defiant Hufflepuff said. The other witches nodded in agreement, even if the adults remained skeptical of the tale of the black unicorn.

* * *

In the Forbidden Forest, the brackish water of the pond had been transmuted to a vivid cobalt blue. Two tall nearly albino figures waited without moving, the only sign of impatience a slight spring of their feet. Even after ten thousand years, a discovery of this magnitude thrilled the predatory instincts of the Leshay.

The blue pool began to twist and bubble as angry ripples broke the surface. Nearby animals chittered and ran away, and even the vegetation attempted to draw back. The two hunters knelt down, their eyes bowed to the ground. A face appeared in the water - a faerie with sharp angular features, beguiling blood black eyes, and a mane of sparkling black hair framing her pale flawless face. Her terrible beauty chilled to the bone and radiated the corruption of things far worse than death. There were no madness in her eyes, unlike many of her worshippers, but a perverse coldness that no acts of kindness or evil could disturb. The Queen of Air and Darkness beckoned her servants to begin.

"The beast is enormous, My Lady. Perhaps 20 hands tall. It slaughtered the werewolves like nothing. It crushed their skulls and tore apart their bodies."

"We can smell the faerie magic. As strong as any beast in the First World. As powerful as the **Tane**, your majesty." Nox knew that he had gone too far to speak so of the Queen's creations. "But of course not as great. And only like the lesser **Tane**." He quickly added.

"And you are certain that this is Harry James Potter?" The Queen said.

"As certain as we can be. His magic is unlike anything we have seen - but it has the touch of the First World. Much like the trace we found on that Malfoy boy. Malfoy attacked Harry one moon ago with a faerie potion to curse him. Instead he has blessed him."

"The boy has changed. He is like one of your creations. Beautiful. Fierce. Terrifying. Even we, the Leshay, wonder whether he would survive our Hunt."

The Queen pursed her ruby lips, a red fresher than newly spilt blood. "But he is not mine. I did not make him and yet he is exists - stronger and larger than my own dark unicorns."

"Shall we hunt him down, my Lady? Shall we bring you his head?" Nix's eyes gleamed with madness.

"No, let others strike first. We will find who created him and who controls him now. Mine is the right to rule the dark fey. And this Harry Potter belongs to me. He will fall into my clutches. But first, we shall toy with him. We will see if he bends or breaks. And we will prepare the world for my return."

* * *

In the first four years, Hermione had learned that wizards and witches weren't the most rational thinkers. Yet, the reaction to the Moony Massacre was over the top. Somehow, Dolores Umbridge had escaped the obvious blame for the fiasco, as the Daily Prophet focused on the feral unicorn, while also noting that Dumbledore allowed his teachers to assign any detention they wished with impunity. The idea of a killer unicorn was so striking that the press had a field day, releasing multiple Special Editions with expert interviews, insider tales, and shocking accounts - none of which were actually sourced from the seven witches at the scene. Hermione was appalled in particular by the latest Rita Skeeter story - **"The Black Beast - are Hogwarts witches in danger of being ravished?**" Next to the article, there was a grainy photo of a black horse with what appeared to be a plastic horn attached.

No one believed Hermione's claims that Harry Potter was the black unicorn. McGonagall reiterated that the idea of a magical animagus form was preposterous and witches cared more about the romantic rescue than any absurd speculation. Romilda Vane wondered aloud whether Lavender Brown was now soul bound and destined to be the unicorn's mate. The ribald jokes by Vane's clique of younger witches on whether Lav Lav would enjoy riding the Big Black Beast resulted in a sharp warning from Parvati against any smears or slander against the heroic unicorn. That saved Romilda from being hexed by a furious Lavender.

In private, Lavender and Parvati confirmed what they had refused to comment in public. The black unicorn did have green eyes and a prominent scar on the right. Yet, even that did not get the expected response from the Weasleys.

"Blimey, I hope you are wrong. It would be terrible if Harry was the Black Beast." Ron said in the Gryffindor Common Room.

"But why? It would mean that he was alive." Hermione said.

"Hermione" said the two trickster twins. "Do you think the unicorn could play quidditch? Because we need a better seeker and keeper." Fred and George chortled.

"Oi, I am a fine keeper." Ron grumped. "We could have won the game against Slytherin if someone didn't interfere with the bludger."

"Focus, Ron." Hermione snapped. "Why would it be bad if Harry could turn into a unicorn animagus?"

Ron scratched his ears, buying himself a bit of time. "It is not the unicorn." He lowered his voice. "It is that he turned black."

"What?" Hermione yelled, attracting the attention of several housemates. "What is wrong with being black?"

"Blimey, Hermione. I was trying to whisper." a sheepish Ron said.

"Yes, Ronald Weasley. Tell us your problem with black people." Angelina Johnson glowered to the discomfort of Ron and his two brothers.

"Oi, Angelina, we are not sure if Ron is actually a Weasley. Maybe he was left in a basket on our doorstep." said one of the two twins.

"I have no problem with black people. I mean - I am friends with Dean Thomas, right?" Dean nodded, not wanting to ruin his chances with Ginny Weasley. Ron's voice gained a bit of confidence. "Just look at the death eaters. Black robes. He Who Must be Named - he is always in black. Every wizard that turns bad - they wear black."

"You are claiming that Harry may be turning bad because of skin color?" a confused Hermione asked.

"I hate to say it but Ron may be right. The Star Wars villains all wear black. It is called the Dark Side for a reason." Dean Thomas mused.

Ron nodded. "Exactly, the unicorn wasn't pure and white. It was mean and black. Unicorns aren't supposed to kill werewolves."

"How was he supposed to save us? By sitting down and talking with the werewolves? By appealing to their better sides?" Hermione said.

'Hermione, we understand that Halloween was traumatic and Umbridge is a horror." Angelina said. "But McGonagall says that Harry can't become a unicorn. And when is she ever wrong?"

Hermione fumed but there was little left to be said. The Gryffindors were united in sticking their fingers in their ears. She walked away and didn't hear the last few words.

"I really hope Harry isn't the Black Unicorn. I hope he isn't turning dark." Ron said.

* * *

Harry breathed hard, recovering from the run. It had been a fool idea, to forego his unicorn form and try to jog around as a 15 year old ex wizard. The Forbidden Forest was full of tree roots and stumps, low hanging branches, thorns and brambles. Harry was tired, not from the few moments he could actually move faster than a brisk walk, but rather climbing over and ducking under the many obstacles of these wretched woods.

The day after Halloween, Harry chose not to practice his shift. There was no regret for his actions last night. He had caught the werewolves in midst of their base attempts to satisfy their vile tastes for rape and turning humans. They deserved to die, and Harry only wished that Umbridge would get her just reward soon, and preferably as painfully as possible.

That was the issue. Harry had never been very self aware but he could recognize the joy of killing, and the blood lust that had taken hold last night. He had killed effortlessly and brutally. They deserved it of course. They were child abusers, rapists and murderers. He had asked a morose Remus Lupin one August evening that summer about his past. The depressed wizard had told about how his father Lyall Lupin he had offended a thuggish Fenrir Greyback suspected of killing two muggle children. In their infinite wisdom, the Ministry had released Greyback with an apology and the werewolf had bitten the five year old Remus, condemning him to life as a werewolf. Greyback deserved something more painful than a quick death. The werewolf had terrorized wizards and muggles for decades.

How many more Greybacks were out there, Harry wondered. Monsters hidden in plain sight because the Ministry had failed to protect people. Hundreds, maybe thousands of witches and wizards, many children, had perished. How many more innocents would have to die from neglect and incompetence? The Death Eaters were no different than Greyback and his pack. Lucius Malfoy and the purebloods supported the Dark Lord in his reign of terror, that Greyback and other dark creatures had enforced. Harry remembered the rant at the Little Hangleton Graveyard when Voldemort had bragged about his vast magical powers and that a foolish young boy would never be able to match him.

The boy disappeared, and a giant black unicorn stood in the dim light of the Forest. The unicorn sharpened his horn against the trunk of a gnarled sycamore tree. Harry Potter looked forward to seeing Voldemort again, hopefully in front of all the Death Eater followers. He would not cower the next time they met.

* * *

Hermione Granger was working in the library when she was summoned by Professor McGonagall to see the Headmaster. She put away the book she had borrowed from the Restricted Section into her Extendable Bag - **Secrets of Blood Magic,** blocking the title with her body as she packed up her notebooks and quills.

"Do you know why the Headmaster wants to see me?" Hermione asked.

"Professor Dumbledore doesn't inform me of his plans." McGonagall responded.

"But have you ever asked?" Hermione pressed.

"Miss Granger, the Headmaster may speak to students at Hogwarts as he likes." the Gryffindor head snapped. The relationship between Hermione and her once idol had cooled in the last few days. Hermione insisted that the unicorn had been Harry Potter while Minerva McGonagall scoffed at such an absurd conjecture.

"Professor McGonagall, I looked through the **Advanced Guide to Transfiguration**, and..."

"Miss Granger. It is simply impossible to have a magical animagus form. Such a transfiguration would require too much energy. As you know from **Human Transfiguration**, most forms are smaller. For example, I am a cat. Other witches and wizards have become birds or dogs or beetles. It is nearly impossible to have an animagus form as large as a human."

"But, Harry's dad was a stag. A grown stag can weigh 50 stones!" Hermione said.

"Yes, the Potters are notorious for breaking the rules of magic." McGonagall agreed reluctantly. "But a magical creature is far different from a normal animal. And this unicorn is a highly magical animal - not as much as a phoenix perhaps but more than a kneazle or a thestral."

* * *

Hermione had arrived at the gargoyle guarding the Headmaster's office. She prepared herself mentally, remembering Daphne's lessons. True occlumency was not clearing the mind. The trick was not to deny emotions but to project a wall of beliefs, even if certain memories or feelings were omitted entirely. An occlumens had to lie to himself first. That might explain why Voldemort and Dumbledore were reputed to be masters, Hermione thought.

Hermione carefully constructed her mind castle. _These are the things I believe. These are the things I know_ \- she buried her doubts about the Headmaster and the past deep in the recesses of her mind. Focus on school, OWLS, the plight of house elves. She repeated these mantras like a ritual chant as McGonagall ushered her into the office.

"Ah, Miss Granger, thank you for coming. Professor McGonagall, you may leave now." The Gryffindor head nodded, and then walked away, leaving Hermione to fend for herself. Hermione ruthlessly suppressed her feelings about McGonagall's stewardship of Gryffindor House.

"You wished to me see, Professor Dumbledore?" Hermione said.

"Ah, yes." The Headmaster chuckled. "I wanted to see if you had anything else to share about the troubles in Halloween."

"I have told everything to the aurors, Sir. I don't think anyone believes me about Harry." Hermione said.

"Why do you believe it is Harry, my dear?" Dumbledore's twinkling blue eyes gazed at Hermione.

"The unicorn had a lightning bolt scar over his right eye, and the eyes were both emerald green." Hermione said. "But I told all of this to Tonks and Vance."

"But is that it? Did the unicorn speak to you, my dear?" Dumbledore's glance grew sharper.

"No, Sir. The unicorn raised its legs so Harry could let us drink the blood - but there were no words." Hermione said.

"Are you sure, my dear girl? There was nothing else?" Dumbledore's eyes blazed so brightly that Hermione wanted to turn away.

The drop of blood in her purse. She was studying blood magic to find the proper diagnostic charms. Hermione had a moment of crystal clear clarity. It would be a terrible thing if Dumbledore found out about the drop of blood. She wasn't sure what the Headmaster would do, but she could not let that happen._ Believe in the lie. You don't know anything about Harry. You don't know why he left._ Hermione mustered every bit of her ability to concentrate and focused on her mind castle. "No, Headmaster. There was nothing else." Hermione replied, in a steady and even voice.

"A pity, Miss Granger. Without the corroboration of the other witches, we cannot be sure. And the unicorn did not speak to you." Dumbledore said, the touch of disappointment in his voice clear.

"Sir, what will happen with Umbridge? Have the DMLE charged her yet?"

"Professor Umbridge, Miss Granger. Alas, there is no firm evidence against her."

"What? She is still our Defense Against Dark Arts teacher?" Hermione asked.

"I am afraid nothing connects her to the attack."

"She set us up to be raped and bitten. All seven of us." Hermione said furiously. "How can you let her remain at Hogwarts?"

"I will write a sharp reprimand in her teaching record. Anyone who reviews her conduct will know that she is not to be trusted with children." Dumbledore said soothingly.

"Everyone who isn't blind can see that she is not to be trusted. And who cares about a reprimand? What about her actions? Forming an Inquisitorial Squad. Punishing anyone who speaks out against her. And giving us to werewolves!" Hermione ranted.

"Patience, Miss Granger - after all, the curse on the Defense position means it is unlikely she will return next year." Dumbledore said.

"You are allowing her to teach for another seven months? And you are relying on a rumored curse to remove her? A curse that no one fully understands?" Hermione said.

"Perhaps if Harry had left one of the werewolves alive, we could connect Umbridge to the attack. But unfortunately, the unicorn killed them all." The Headmaster sighed.

"They were trying to rape us." Hermione said.

"All creatures have a right to live, Miss Granger. Even Fenrir Greyback."

"I am glad they are dead. I read about Greyback. He's bitten young children and killed many more. I am glad Harry killed the monster." Hermione said.

"Miss Granger, we cannot descend to their level." Dumbledore said solemnly.

"Perhaps if you or the Ministry had taken him seriously, there would be more magical children alive today." Hermione stood up. "I would like to return to my studies. I have some revising to do for Charm." She left to the noise of Dumbledore's sighs.

Hermione waited until she was far away from the Headmaster's office before she relaxed her Occlumency shields. She needed to analyze Harry's blood soon. She would never allow the drop to fall to Dumbledore or anyone else.

* * *

The Queen of Air and Darkness rested on the throne room, the highest point allowed in an infinite plane of rolling hills, flowered fields, and orderly copses of tall trees. She lived in a small castle, with tall turrets that fluttered with flags bearing an unholy sigil, a black diamond with ten facets, and ivory walls that glistened slightly with rainbow colors when struck with strong light. That was infrequent for she demanded that the sun hide behind a bank of clouds, leaving the land in perpetual twilight. When the rebels launched another fruitless attack, Androlynne's gloomy sky would lift for a moment, and then return swiftly to a haunted colorless world.

The Queen could have built a far larger fortress with high ivory towers and ornate mirrored halls. That bastion would have massive gardens for afternoon tea, and endless walkways where her knights would march, bringing back tribute and trophies of heroic quests, like Lancelot's constant stream of prisoners to the cuckolded Arthur and easily impressed Guinevere. The Queen found such medieval displays tiresome. She preferred her castle, with unreal beauty, hidden mysteries, and dark uncertainties. Any idiot demon could rule over a world stocked with grotesque monstrosities and ravening hordes of brutes dwelling in utter filth. Only she, the Queen of Air and Darkness, had the vision to trap a generation of faerie children to hunt them down one by one for her leisure. Only she had the exquisite pleasure of endless torment and corruption, rather than a crude barbaric torture and killing. The celestials flocking to her plane even believed in some moments that they might win, before she dashed those absurd hopes. None of her victims, nor their children, would ever escape Androlynne.

The throne room filled with servants as several riders on winged beasts approached, flying through the many windows that pierced the castle. The riders landed, handing off their raucous griffons to be fed and then quartered in the stables below. The knights approached their Queen solemnly, dressed in full plate mail, their blood red eyes visible only through slits on their horned helmets. The only noise was the sound of piteous crying from the bound children, being led to the Queen on leashes of leather and cold iron.

"My Lady, we have three prisoners." the lead warrior announced.

The Queen let no emotion mar her lovely face. She reached her magic out to the minds and souls of the cringing prisoners. They were innocent - untouched by sin or guilt. In Androlynne, there were small cities and towns where the remnants of the faerie huddled behind celestial crusaders. They were young - perhaps less than a century old. Even after ten thousand years, the forces of good tried to maintain the illusion of normalcy and hope. And they were terrified. The tales of the unseelie court frightened the boldest hero, and these were normal children.

"My Lady, please. Mercy. Mercy." begged a slightly older girl, her blue wings trembling.

"Do not beg for Mercy." the horned warrior said. "For the Queen has none."

"Enough, you are dismissed." The Queen said, her voice ringing through the throne room." The knights rushed out of the chamber to escape, leaving the three bound children behind. More servants appeared, bearing goblets of wine and sweetmeats on golden trays. The prisoners were unshackled and fed, although guards stood watch.

The Queen of Air and Magic stole the secrets of binding long ago. She had tricked the fey prince into condemning thousands of children to her world. She had watched the dwarves construct their indestructible chain to hold the Great Wolf until the end of the world. She knew all about the ridiculous soul pacts mortals entered for a semblance of immortality or power. Chaining a unicorn, to be corrupted into darkness, was not much different. She would need the souls of innocent maidens, unblemished by evil. Better if these children were not crying and screaming before the harvest.

* * *

Hermione stood in a broken stall in Moaning Myrtle's Bathroom, satisfied that once gain, she chose the right place for her experiment. The wooden door was dangling off the hinges, but she knew that she would not be disturbed. Myrtle preferred to haunt the Prefect's Bathroom with its dozens of golden taps feeding into a decadent pool-like tub. The second floor bathroom had cracked mirrors, chipped sinks, half burnt down candles, and mold on the damp floor. No witch in her right mind would use the loo here.

Hermione finished brewing the Draught of Detection in the copper cauldron. With great care, she transferred the drop of Harry's blood with a pipette dropper. The blue liquid in the cauldron turned a glowing silver, rich with light. Hermione checked her borrowed copy of **Moste Potente Potions**. According to Phineas Bourne, only magical energy would change the color, and the brightness indicated the blood donor's strength. Hermione prepared a **Lux Revelio** to properly measure the luminosity when the potion abruptly changed to a deep yellow peppered with black spots. The yellow blazed like the sun, but the black blots were troubling. Before Hermione could check the formula in the book, the liquid changed again to a dark green, followed by a golden white. Hermione goggled. This was not supposed to happen. The Draught should have stayed one color. What did this mean for Harry? The cauldron now had a riot of colors, as if the potion could not decide upon the nature of his magic.

"Hello, Hermione."

She spun around, her wand ready with a hex, only to come face to face with the pale silvery eyes of Luna Lovegood. "Luna, what are you doing here?" Hermione said.

"We came to see you." the pretty Ravenclaw said. Several other witches crowded into Myrtle's Bathroom - Daphne Greengrass, Susan Bones, and Tracey Davis.

"Lavender says that McGonagall brought you to the Headmaster's office." Daphne Greengrass said. "Susan and Luna insisted that we check on you. What potion were you brewing?"

"I was just doing an experiment. On slow acting poisons and how to counter them with pickled murtlap tentacles." Hermione rushed.

"Please, Granger. We are not idiots. Murtlap essence is dull blue." Daphne peered at the kaleidoscope of colors. "Red, blue, violet, indigo - and it is still shimmering."

"We know you took **The Secrets of Blood Magic** from the Restricted Section." Tracey said.

"How do you know that?" a flustered Hermione asked.

"Because we want to borrow that book too." Daphne said. "You are the not only one researching Harry Potter."

"But you told Dumbledore that you didn't believe the unicorn was Harry." Hermione protested.

"No, we said we don't remember seeing the scar. Dumbledore and the DMLE assumed that Potter wasn't the unicorn. You may be a very bright witch, but you are not thinking clearly." Daphne said.

Before Hermione could bristle at the Slytherin witch's comment, Susan jumped in. "Hermione, we know the unicorn is Harry Potter. We owe him an immense debt for saving us. That is why we are keeping it to ourselves. What would happen if the Ministry knew for certain, that Harry could transform into an unicorn?"

Hermione bit her lower lip as she considered the consequences. "They would track him down. They would try to understand how that change happened."

"But we already know how it happened." Susan said.

"Draco's potion." Hermione said.

"But why? Why did it happen?" Daphne said. "No potion in any book can change a wizard into a black unicorn. But someone gave that potion to Draco. Someone wiped Draco's memory. And someone knew the effect it would have on Harry Potter."

"Who could do such a thing? And why?" Hermione wondered aloud.

"We don't know. But not the Death Eaters or Dumbledore." Daphne said.

Hermione decided to share her discovery. "The cauldron holds a Draught of Detection. On Halloween, I put a drop of Harry's blood into my bag. I finally tested the drop tonight." "But what does it mean?" Susan asked looking at the swirling rainbow colors.

"I am not sure. His blood is unstable. His magic may decay. He could lose his humanity. He might be hurt." Hermione rapidly considered possibilities, none of them positive.

"Don't panic, Hermione. Three days ago, he was a giant black unicorn who slaughtered England's most feared werewolf pack." Daphne said. "But you are right to worry. We have no idea what is going on - and we know a lot more than the Ministry or Dumbledore. Luna, can you see anything?"

"They are coming to hunt the unicorn. But who and when and where, I can't see." the blond Ravenclaw said sadly.

* * *

The Queen of Air and Darkness appeared on Charing Cross Road. When she was in London last, over fifteen hundred years ago, there had been no road and no Diagon Alley. Then this place had been named Londonium, a fading city, abandoned by the Romans and torn apart by raging battles between Angles, Saxons, Britons and Picts for the carcass of England. The facade of peace returned after Arthur won the Battle of Badon but the city of London would not recover for another four hundred years.

Her guard marched behind her - invisible to human eyes - pale kings and princes, all in a file. Their skeletal faces and starved lips had forgotten the famous names they bore in life and in death, they remembered only an insatiable hunger for the Faerie Queen's favor.

She walked to the white marble building that towered above the little neighboring shops. The bronze doors flew open at her approach and alarms shrieked in fear. The tethered dragons roared and pulled at heavy steel cuffs, nearly wrenching their chains from massive pegs hammered into the deep bedrock. The guards in their uniforms of scarlet and gold cowered as their racial memory recalled the First Age and the reign of the Eldest.

When she had passed through the silver doors, an aged stout goblin bearing a short stubby rod, waited. "This humble goblin is Ragnuk. How may I serve my Queen?" The goblin knelt on the floor as the pale warriors filled the atrium, their swords and lances ready to strike.

The Queen held out her hand, and a silver and gold net appeared, finer than any goblin artifact ever forged. Ragnuk took the offered net with caution, touching only the edges, lest the magic ensnare him. It was far too large for a goblin to wield, and for that the goblin king was thankful.

"It is a net to trap a unicorn. And once caught, the beast can never escape." she said.

Ragnuk wondered what horrors had gone into the magic of this binding. He knew also which unicorn the Queen desired. "We are not hunters, my Lady." Ragnuk said. Even the merciless goblins balked at the curse that came with killing an unicorn.

"Then find those who wish to capture the black unicorn. Give them my gift." she commanded.

The goblins knew all too well the price of her gifts. "It shall be done. And what do you wish in return?"

"The unicorn's head." That was a lie of course. The Queen of Air and Darkness wanted something far worse than the black unicorn's death.


	7. Dumbledore's Army

**Dumbledore's Army**

The handsome manor house set on acres of elaborate gardens and guarded by a wrought iron gate held many treasures. Over a thousand years, the Malfoy ancestors displayed on the portraits lining the gold leaf walls seized great wealth from both muggles and magicals. The choicest pieces of loot could be found in the family home - statues of ancient gods, jewels set in crowns and necklaces, stolen art from distant lands, and dark relics hidden in the cellar. None of these treasures compared to the exquisite net made of finely beaten gold and silver spread out on the long ornate table in the drawing room.

"The magic is exceptionally powerful, My Lord, but resistant to analysis. I believe the net is of faerie origin." Augustus Rookwood said, addressing the wizard at the head at the table, whose once handsome face had been tainted by dark magic.

The meeting of the Inner Circle had been already called well before the goblins contacted Lucius Malfoy. Malfoy acquired the net without thinking, hoping to redeem himself in the Dark Lord's eyes. The Dark Lord had not been pleased with the news of Fenrir Greyback's death or Harry Potter's potential return. The Dark Lord considered the net as the dozen Death Eaters stayed silent, fearful of attracting their Master's attention.

"And what did the goblins want for this artifact?" Voldemort asked.

"A trophy - the head and horn." Lucius said. "The goblins said that we may keep the net after we capture the black unicorn."

"Severus, is Harry Potter the Black Unicorn?" Voldemort demanded.

"My Lord, we do not know. The Headmaster would like to believe so, but besides the Mudblood Granger's words, no other witch claims to have seen the scar. The blood traitor McGonagall believes it to be impossible and Nurse Pomfrey is certain the boy had no trace of magic when he left the castle." Snape said. "Dumbledore sent Hagrid to the Forbidden Forest with a deluminator to trace Harry. The boy could not be detected by magic."

Voldemort wondered why on earth a deluminator had such powers, and how a device that was created to put out lights should be able to locate a wizard in a forest.

"My Lord." Corban Yaxley began. "Is it necessary to find this unicorn? You already control the Minister. Besides the DMLE and the Unspeakables, we command every single area of the Ministry. Even in those two departments, we have much influence. With the defection of many neutrals, we have a majority of the Wizengamot."

"Bah, you are just frightened of killing a unicorn. I would be happy to do it, my Lord. I would chop him up with my axe." Walden Macnair said, his face as ugly as his personality.

"Madame Bones and the aurors believe the black unicorn killed the seven werewolves in a few minutes, before healing the witches. The unicorn is quite dangerous, and trying to capture it in the Forbidden Forest will be difficult, even with this net. The creature is not like the helpless beasts you usually kill, MacNair." Yaxley continued.

"Yaxley, what does the DMLE think?" Voldemort asked.

The Minister Deputy Head for the DMLE shrugged. "Something large and powerful killed the werewolves. No one has ever seen a black unicorn but all seven witches tell the same story of the rescue. As for whether it is Potter, no one knows. It seems impossible but unicorns reside deep in the Forest. Why would the unicorn run so far to rescue witches, unless it knew them? And to give the witches blood to drink - that behavior is completely strange. No magizoologist has ever seen such a thing."

Voldemort slammed his hand on the table. "I must know if Harry Potter is the unicorn. The boy has been a thorn in my side for too long. Rookwood, tell the others of your success."

The grey haired Unspeakable bowed. "With help from Cornelius Fudge, I took this from the Hall of Prophecies." Rookwood took out a small spun-glass ball with swirling blue grey mist, bearing the letters S.P.T to A.P.W.B.D. "This is the record of the prediction that Trelawney made."

"But Dumbledore said the orb would be protected by defensive spells." A surprised Snape said.

"And what else did Dumbledore tell you?" Voldemort hissed. After that comment silenced Snape, the Dark Lord beckoned his Unspeakable spy to continue.

"It is true prophecy orbs are trapped to cause madness to thieves. But there is one loophole. The Keeper of the Hall is immune to the anti-theft spells. Minister Fudge appointed me as the Keeper." Rookwood announced.

Voldemort held his hand out. The Dark Lord touched the glass sphere and the mists parted.

_"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches. Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month die.. And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not. And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives."_

"My Lord, do you think the power is this animagus form?" Bellatrix Lestrange asked.

"Bah, even the most powerful beast is no match for my powers. But if Harry Potter has returned, then he must die at my hands. We must capture this unicorn." Voldemort said.

"My Lord, it will be difficult to do so in the Forest." Yaxley said. "The Aurors attempted to follow the tracks, but the terrain is rough and arduous. A unicorn will have a great advantage fighting in the Forbidden Forest.

"Then we must lure him out." Voldemort mused. "Even if we burn Hogwarts to the ground."

* * *

In the Headmaster's office, Dumbledore had finished listening to a litany of complaints from the school Board when an angry witch walked in. Minerva McGonagall was an excellent teacher of Transfiguration but a mediocre Head of House and a terrible Deputy Headmistress. Despite her poor performance in those areas, the damage to Hogwarts's reputation from the Halloween debacle affected her deeply. Worse, she saw no real attempt to address the underlying issue for this year, Dolores Umbridge.

"Albus, you canna be serious that the foul woman is still teaching Defense Against Dark Arts!" McGonagall yelled.

"Good afternoon, Minerva. Alas, the Ministry forced her upon us and she has a one year contract. Fortunately, Defense Teachers tend not to last very long."

"Why not reassign her? Give her a job that she will hate - like being assistant to Argus Filch as caretaker and Groundskeeper. Or have her teach Muggle Studies." McGonagall said.

"I hardly think having Dolores lecture on how muggles behave to wizards will help magical - muggle relations." Dumbledore chided. "And who would be the Defense Against Dark Arts teacher? It is a not a position many want, besides Severus Snape who begs for the spot every year."

"Albus, a training dummy would be a better teacher. You know quite well that Lord and Lady Greengrass intend to monitor her class closely. They have full support from other families, including many Lions. Your support on the Board is tenuous, and if another debacle happens, they may appoint a new Headmaster!" McGonagall said.

The headmaster blinked. The idea of Hogwarts without the great Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was hard to fathom. Before he could point out that he was Hogwarts and had been for the last century, a panicked house elf rushed. "Headmister - batty old scarf lady gone crazy." Dizzy said.

"Professor Trelawney?" Dumbledore asked.

The house elf nodded. "She be speaking in tongues, and yelling and throwing cups of tea."

McGonagall snorted. "Are you sure she isn't practicing her act?"

"Sybill's divinations have gotten rather energetic recently. Minerva, I must attend to her. I would not want Professor Trelawney to suffer from her enthusiasm." Dumbledore said.

McGonagall rose as well. "I will come with you. After all, I am the Deputy Headmistress."

For a second, Dumbledore's eyes narrowed but before McGonagall noticed, he relaxed with a broad smile. "Splendid, let us go there now."

* * *

When they climbed the stairs through the circular trapdoor, they were confronted by a scene of utter disarray. Shattered silver balls and tea cups were strewn all over ground, and a bookcase filled with feathers, candles and playing cards had been ripped down, crushing the contents against armchairs and small tables. A strong smell of cooking sherry filled the room and there were stains all over red scarves and satin curtains, haphazardly wrapped around many objects in the room. The object of their concern, Sybill Trelawney, sat in a filthy corner, her crossed eyes staring unblinkingly at the smoky fire under the crowded mantleplace. The chains, bangles and rings that adorned her spindy neck, arms and wrists had been torn apart, and both McGonagall and Dumbledore could see the bloody, ripped fingers on her hands. She gave no sign of recognizing her fellow teachers.

"Sybill, are you quite alright?" the Headmaster asked. He hoped that Snape's potion had not caused such a drastic change. The last thing he needed was to find another Divination teacher.

The crazed seer spoke in a somber solemn voice. It was nothing like the whispery theatrical productions McGonagall heard before. "I have seen them. They are coming. Great beasts who will battle at Hogwarts. A cat consumed by rage and anger. Students trapped and stolen. A killing fury that wizards cannot withstand. Woe to all - prey and predator alike. They will return and burn." Trelawney passed out, the exertions of her vision exhausting her.

"**Enervate**." Dumbledore said, swirling the Elder Wand. "Who are they? What will burn?"

"Everything burns. Some will escape - the battle strong, the new born knights. But the end is coming. No knight or wizard can stop the Queen of Air and Darkness. Hogwarts will fall. And all your tricks and plots will turn to dust."

Trelawney fainted again. Dumbledore did not bother to awaken her again. The Headmaster cast several silent **Reparos** and the room, while still hideously decorated, could function again as a classroom. Dumbledore instructed Dizzy to bring the drooling Trelawney to Madam Pomfrey.

"Albus, do you think Trelawney's prediction is true?" an unnerved McGonagall asked.

"It is certainly possible. Sybill has been on quite an impressive streak the last two years." Dumbledore said with a touch of admiration.

"Then we must alert the DMLE. If the school will be attacked, we will need all the help we can get to protect the students. Thanks to that odious Umbridge, they have no idea how to defend themselves. They will be helpless prey." She said.

"Even if the prophecy is correct, we don't know when an attack will happen." Dumbledore warned. "It may take many years. Hogwarts has always taken care of itself and remained independent from political interference. And can we truly trust the DMLE? Death Eaters may have infiltrated the Ministry."

"Poppycock. You know Madam Bones is no Death Eater. She can provide us help. And our students need to learn defense. Umbridge is certainly not teaching them." McGonagall said.

"The safety of the students is always on my mind. I have a clever plan that may achieve that very objective." Dumbledore twinkled. "But first, Lemon Drop?"

The witch popped the yellow candy into her mouth. Her eyes glazed over and her mouth went slack. Minerva felt dizzy, and sat down hard on a tacky chintz armchair. "Albus, what am I doing here?" she asked.

The headmaster smiled. "I am glad you are okay, Minerva. Sybill has been using far too much incense to awaken her powers of divination. Pomfrey will be able to make her better. You were exposed briefly but I dispersed the stuffy air."

"Oh… the Divination Classroom needs better ventilation." McGonagall said. "I have to be off. I need to check on my quidditch team."

"Of course, Minerva. Quidditch is very important. Could you send me a Gryffindor elf? I have to ask him a question." Dumbledore said. The witch nodded as she passed.

Later that afternoon, Dumbledore accepted the two prefect badges from the dutiful house elf. He cast a long lasting and extremely powerful **compulsion** charm on both, before giving Ippy the Elf permission to return them to the Fifth Year Gryffindor dorms. A good solution, Dumbledore thought. The students would be better prepared for any attacks, without clashing directly with Umbridge, and his loyal followers would lead the way.

* * *

Ever since she could remember, Hermione loved school : the thrill of opening new books, taking a fresh quill and jotting down notes, absorbing knowledge, even her hopefully secret delight at answering questions first in class. The Defense Against Dark Arts was destroying that, just the same as every other student in the classroom. Umbridge's teaching, which had always been terrible, had gotten even worse.

Hermione did not blame Daphne Greengrass. The cunning blond witch had made it quite clear that her family would do anything to prevent the horrible witch from threatening the Greengrass sisters. After the public outcry, Hogwarts was forced to monitor all classes and detentions, and Lord and Lady Greengrass had dispatched two dour family barristers to watch Umbridge like a hawk, hoping to document any infractions on their very noticeable legal pads.

Umbridge had taken counteraction. In the past, she asked each student to read a few paragraphs at a time. Now she called on witches and wizards for a single sentence, or sometimes only a clause. The already dull class became positively lethargic and stilted, with not even a pretense of learning. The class was the magical equivalent of reading the phone book under the watchful eyes of a sneering umbridge and two glowering attorneys.

Everything had slowed down at Hogwarts. Umbridge appointed herself the High Inquisitor and demanded that she audit other classes, to demonstrate the proper methods of instruction. The shrewish toad enjoyed interrupting lessons with a "Hem Hem" and made life a complete misery for student and teacher alike. That the worst teacher in the school felt qualified to criticize better professors was a farce, but the impact on learning was no joke.

Hermione was worried about more than just OWLs. She had spent many hours pouring over the few books in the Hogwarts library on blood magic. Fluctuations in the Draught of Detection was a sign of unstable magic and often happened to those who suffered serious spell damage. Harry was in the Forest alone, Hermione thought. Harry really needed more medical support at Hogwarts. Nurse Pomfrey was a dear but simply being patched up and sent away was not a real solution. As she packed up her books, Hermione wondered how to bring him a healer, or an expert on unicorns. Certainly she would need someone with a better sense than Hagrid, whose joy in life was breeding dangerous creatures.

"Hello, Hermione, are you going to the library?" Lavender Brown asked. The blonde witch still enjoyed gossip and fashion but had discovered a more serious side after Halloween.

"Yes, I need to revise more for OWLs. Don't you have divination now?" she asked.

"I have a free. Trelawney is ill. The rumor is too much psychedelic mushrooms." Lavender laughed at the shock on Hermione's face. "Many seers have used chemical stimulants."

"I thought she relied only on tea and sherry." Hermione said.

"Can I help you on your research?" Lavender whispered. "I know you have been trying to learn more about blood magic."

"Thanks but I have gone through all the books in the library. I really do need to study Defense. Umbridge's class is not helping." Hermione replied.

"I know. Half the wizards are asleep. Ron Weasley was snoring behind the Slinkhard book. I am sure to fail the OWL. I only hope I can get a Dreadful and not a Troll." Lavender said.

"I would be happy to lend you my notes." Hermione said.

"Thanks, but it is really the practical side that looks to be a Troll." Lavender said. The two witches chatted amiably on the way to the library.

* * *

Hermione was taking notes on** Advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts**. The book was written by Professor Galatea Merrythought who had taught at Hogwarts for fifty years. She had been senior DADA instructor for OWLs and NEWT classes when Dumbledore had served as her junior colleague in the 1910s. The language was stilted but she definitely knew the material. Merrythought was rumored to have single handedly captured a marauding manticore in the First World War. Hermione would have loved to follow her footsteps : respected professor and successful spell book writer.

A loud bang startled Hermione. Ron Weasley marched into the library, dragging a Cleansweep Eleven behind him, nearly swatting several witches in the head. Hermione was shocked. She rarely saw Ron in the library, and never when he could play or practice quidditch. Hermione could see Irma Pince's pained face at the muddy footsteps on the library floor.

"OI, Herms!" Ron shouted, the prefect's badge prominent on his quidditch sweats. "We might fail our DADA OWLs. I might get a Troll! We need to study for Defense Against Dark Arts."

"Ron, you should study for all your exams. You need to do well in the other subjects too, like Potions and Transfiguration." Hermione said, perplexed. Only last week, Ron declared that OWLs were irrelevant to his grand dream of becoming keeper for the Chudley Cannons.

"Who cares about turning rabbits into slippers or beetles into buttons? We need to defend ourselves. Protect Hogwarts. Get all O's in the Defense OWL." Ron ranted.

"Weasley, we are trying to study here." Daphne Greengrass said. The blonde Slytherin was reading **Epic Fantastic Beasts - Mythical Creatures or Merely Hiding?** by Newton Scamander.

The young red head looked ready to retort but stopped at the approach of an irate Irma Pince. Without even a word, the vulture like librarian booted Ronald Weasley out of the library. Hermione sighed, asked Lavender to look after her books, and walked out to find Ron.

* * *

The angry red head was pacing back and forth in the hallway. "Oi, that slimy Slytherin. I bet she wants to sabotage my DADA OWL." Ron fumed. Hermione was certain that Daphne Greengrass had never thought about Ron Weasley's grades, OWL or otherwise.

"Ron, I am surprised by your enthusiasm. But if you want to study, I can lend you my notes…."

"Who cares about notes? We need to practice Defense Against the Dark Arts. Hogwarts may be attacked tomorrow. We will have to form a group to defend the school. We will teach advanced battle tactics. Dueling. Combat." Ron said enthusiastically.

"But how? Umbridge has banned gatherings of more than three students together. Where would you get space to teach a large group? And what exactly will be the material? And who would you recruit?" Hermione said.

"I am a big picture thinker. I have already done the important work. You will have to fill in all these little details, like organization and recruiting. I will teach the spells." Ron puffed up.

"Ron, the only work you have done is tell me I need to do all the work. There is a lot of planning to be done. There needs to be safeguards so that Umbridge doesn't find out. You need to find the right space to teach. You need to …."

"Herms, this boring stuff is your specialty. I have to return to my quidditch game. I only went back to the dorm to pick up a few things when I had this brainstorm to form the Army of Hogwarts."

Ron rushed away on his broom, leaving an annoyed Hermione. The nerve of that red headed prat, she thought. She knew that additional Defense Against Dark Arts lessons would come handy, but she wouldn't do all the work and have Ron Weasley take the credit. Hermione Granger was not going to be anyone's pushover.

Later that night, Hermione was in her dorm, preparing for her prefect patrol. As she pinned on her badge, a sense of euphoria took hold. Of course, Ron Weasley was right. They all needed to learn Defense Against the Dark Arts. It was the duty of the Lions to defend the school against any threats while earning the highest OWL scores possible. She needed to score an Outstanding, and if she could help others, that was her responsibility as a prefect of the best house in Hogwarts. After all, it was for the Greater Good.

* * *

"It is a terrible idea." Daphne Greengrass said. The coven had assembled after breakfast to hear the excited muggleborn witch talk about a Defense Group to prepare for the OWLs and protect Hogwarts. "A school wide group to learn how to defend the castle against any attackers - it won't work well."

"Why?" Hermione asked. We are not learning anything in class."

The blond witch tapped her fingers impatiently on the table. "There are several reasons but the simplest is this. How do you keep it a secret from Umbridge? You want to invite other houses. The woman has appointed herself as High Inquisitor. She will have spies, and she will certainly punish any gathering of large students."

"Students gather all the time. They get together in the Great Hall, the entire school attends the quidditch game - that ban on more than three students is absurd." Hermione argued.

"Granger, do you know why the Minister appointed Umbridge to Hogwarts?" Daphne asked rhetorically. "They are afraid of Dumbledore. They thinks he plans to overthrow the Ministry and that the story of Voldemort's return in the Tournament is part of his plot."

"It is true." The red haired Hufflepuff said. "Auntie told me there is a rumor that Dumbledore created the black unicorn and plans to unleash it against his enemies."

"But that's crazy." Hermione said, wondering why anyone would think the lovable grandfatherly Headmaster was so conniving.

"Of course it is - if Dumbledore could create a creature that powerful, he would have conquered Britain already." Daphne said. "The next problem is who will lead your group?"

"I know most of the Defense spells. Ron Weasley can teach them." Hermione started.

"You need a lot more than to know spells to be a good fighter." Luna said. "My mum was a spellcrafter. She was not a duelist."

"Luna is right. A duelist needs to know spells, to have a lot of power, and to be fast and accurate. I don't doubt your knowledge but without power or speed, you will lose. Is Weasley powerful or fast? Because to be truly good at defense, you can't have average power or speed. Look at the Dark Lord or Dumbledore." Daphne said.

Hermione thought over the Slytherin's words. Harry was the best in the year, perhaps among all the students at Defense. He wasn't the most diligent student but he had power to spare, he was really quick, and had a knack for the right decision under pressure. Harry wasn't here though. It had been a full month since he fled the castle.

"Lastly, why do you want to create this Defense Group. It is not your job to teach the Hogwart students. If you want to get an O on the OWL, then you should just work with Susan and me. We are the best witches in defense, and Tracey and Luna are both good as well. If you want to defend the school, why train students? Why not tell Madame Bones or the teachers - the ones who are supposed to defend the school. Do you really want to lead your classmates into battle? What if they get hurt or worse, die?" Daphne said.

"People die in spell battles. My parents died fighting Voldemort. Fighting other wizards is not a game. If you think the castle is truly in danger, we need more than training the fifth and sixth years." Susan Bones said.

Hermione held up her hands. "I understand your concerns. But can we at least discuss it with Ron and a few others?"

"Alright. But only in a small group - and with privacy charms." Daphne said. The muggleborn witch nodded, and then walked away, oblivious to the unease of her fellow witches.

* * *

Hermione brought Ron and the other Weasleys to a deserted room in the Astronomy Tower. Ron had told his two brothers and sister about his fantastic idea, and the three siblings had promised to recruit their friends. The boisterous banter stopped when the Weasleys saw the four witches waiting in the chamber. Susan Bones, Daphne Greengrass, and Tracey Davis were seated while Luna Lovegood peered out the window at the Forbidden Forest. Hermione could sense the privacy charms that had already been cast.

"Oi, what are two Snakes doing here? Is this a trap?" Ron cried, his hand on his wand.

"Good afternoon to you as well." Daphne said. "Granger wanted to tell us more about this Defense group."

"I am not sure we can trust you. How do you know you won't betray us to the Inquisitorial Squad?" Ron sneered.

"Ron, everyone can help, including the Slytherins. We are trying to form a Defense Association" Hermione said.

"Defense Association sounds boring. The name should be ….." Ginny Weasley paused a second for dramatic effect. "Dumbledore's Army!"

Tracey Davis scoffed. "Why does the Headmaster need a paramilitary organization?" she asked.

"Is the Headmaster involved? Did he instruct you to do this?" a suspicious Daphne Greengrass asked.

"I don't need to answer those questions from your kind." Ron replied belligerently.

"Wait - I don't agree with naming it after Dumbledore. Every year, the Headmaster appoints a horrible Defense teacher. If the Headmaster wanted to defend the students or the castle, he could start with a better professor." Hermione said.

"He is Dumbledore. Leader of the Light. Our only hope against You Know Who." Ron said, shocked at Hermione's criticism of the Headmaster.

The two Weasley twins broke out into a chant, waving their hands like pom poms. "Dumbledore - He's Our Man. If he can't do it, nobody can!"

"Having Dumbledore's name will rally the students." Ginny said. "Everybody knows that Gryffindors are the real heroes and Dumbledore was a Gryffindor."

"But we want other houses to be involved. Everyone should be able to learn Defense Against Dark Arts, not just our house." Hermione said.

"They can join if they follow Gryffindor's Leadership." Ron snorted. "Dumbledore's Army will save the day and get us the best OWL scores."

"I still think it should be called the Defense Association." Hermione said.

Luna turned away from the window. "Why not call it the D.A. - the initials can stand for either name." the dreamy Ravenclaw said.

"Alright." Ron grumbled. "But among the Gryffs, we know it is really Dumbledore's Army."

"The Defense Association." Hermione insisted. "So everyone will be welcome."

"Well, I can see your group is focused on important things. Tracey and I will see ourselves out." Daphne and Tracey left the room, followed by Susan and Luna. Behind the closed door, they could still hear the Gryffindors, bickering over the name.

* * *

The witches reconvened in another room in the deserted Astronomy Tower, and once again, Tracey and Daphne cast a series of complex privacy and silencing charms.

"We are clearly not welcome in the D.A." Tracey said. "But, I doubt we would learn more than our practices against each other."

"Hannah and I will join." Susan said. "We need to watch out for Hermione, and a lot of Hufflepuffs are concerned about their DADA OWLs."

"She is infested with wrackspurts. It is quite unbecoming on her." Luna said. "Susan, I will join you in the D.A."

"We will try to help as much as we can. But I don't understand why Hermione is so set on this. She is going to get into trouble - and we will have failed the unicorn." Daphne said.

"Can we contact Harry?" Tracey asked.

"How? We don't have any way to communicate with him. The aurors and teachers are watching the Forbidden Forest carefully." Daphne said. "No, we have to wait and watch. Let's stay alert. I have a bad feeling about Dumbledore's Army."

* * *

In a pink and prim office, Dolores Umbridge was drafting ministry directives on long slips of parchment. She was enraged that due to Lord Greengrass' interference, she could no longer give detention to the brats in class. She was currently drafting **Educational Decree 25**, giving her sole authority over any punishments, sanctions and loss of privileges but Cornelius would not be able to pass the order - for now. In time, the outrage would die, and she would get her way as always, and then that filthy Mudblood witch would regret crossing her. So would the other witches who escaped the werewolves.

Several other Decrees had been passed - appointing her High Inquisitor and restricting any gathering of students to no more than three. Many more were needed. Umbridge planned to restrict any information from teachers to students, censor the mail and news, fire several of Dumbledore's loyalists. She was most eager for **Educational Decree 29**, where students could be whipped and beaten for insolence, just like in the good old days of medieval punishment. Once she replaced Dumbledore, she would be the greatest Headmistress in Hogwarts history - and the children would behave properly again.

A witch with strawberry blond hair and freckles entered the room. Marietta Edgecombe hated dealing with Umbridge, but she now had a way to divert the horrid witch's attention.

"Madame Umbridge…"

"High Inquisitor Umbridge is the proper title." The witch said warmly, like a spider to a fly.

"High Inquisitor Umbridge, I have heard rumors of a secret defense group being formed and led by the mudblood Granger and the Gryffindors." Marietta said, quelling the fear in her voice.

The pink clad witch blinked and then smiled. She poured a cup of sickly sweet tea for her spy. "Very interesting, my Dear. Please - tell me more."


	8. The Unicorn Hunt

**The Unicorn Hunt**

No one noticed the old hunchbacked man carrying a bullseye lantern near the Forbidden Forest. For a quarter of a century, Argus Filch had been a fixture at Hogwarts, his bulgy eyes and sunken pasty face sweeping the ground sullenly to find any real or imagined troublemakers. Students and teachers avoided the ornery caretaker and his cantankerous disposition. Like a forgettable house ghost, he was part of the scenery - a wanna-be bully easily thwarted by tricksters, a squib benevolently allowed to remain on campus, a petty tyrant unable to actually give punishments. The presence of the truly sadistic Dolores Umbridge had breathed a bit of life into his toothless threats but Filch was a non entity.

Anyone taking a closer look would have realized something wrong. No yellow skeletal scrawny cat crouched at his side, hissing at students. Filch shuffled not in a wheezy decrepit manner but carefully, over concern he would stumble and fall on his bum. The eyes were not watery pale but dark violet and full of mirth - as much mirth as an undercover Nymphadora Tonks could spare. She had been tracking the turncoat since he left the Ministry this afternoon.

The figure of Argus Filch took out an miniature wizard camera, a recent invention by Saul Croaker. No puffs of purple smoke or bright flashes of light were visible as Tonks silently captured her target on film: John Dawlish meeting with Walden Macnair whose beady eyes could be seen under the ghastly executioner's hood. When finished, Tonks took the portkey back to the Ministry, shifting back to her base form on the trip.

Tonks walked into Amelia Bones' office - the prints already developed, and the camera stowed away in a secret locker, away from the eyes of any suspect Unspeakables or aurors. The older witch examined the pictures while Tonks waited, hand on wand in case anyone interrupted. Bones raised her head to the young witch with bubble gum hair, and prompted her to begin.

"This is the third time I followed Dawlish this week to Hogwarts. He casts several detection charms when he leaves the Ministry, and then goes to Diagon Alley and takes the floo to Hogsmeade. The first two times, I lost him near the Forest" Tonks said.

"Any idea what he was doing there?" Amelia asked.

"Walden Macnair was carrying an axe and wearing that ugly hood, and before I lost him yesterday, Dawlish searched around the Bloody Halloween grounds. You don't have to be Head Girl to realize they are looking for the black unicorn." Tonks said. If Madame Bone's niece insisted that her saviour was a black unicorn, that was good enough for the young auror.

"What are they playing at?" Bones wondered out loud. "Two wizards against a creature that killed seven werewolves? If they attacked him, the Dark Lord would lose two of his spies."

"Boss Lady, why does Macnair even work at the Ministry? Dawlish has no record but Macnair supported the bad guys in the First War. Plus he likes killing things. He is an obvious Death Eater, even without the photos." Tonks said.

"I agree but the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Animals is under Pius Thicknesse. And I can hardly criticize. Dawlish is one of mine. The Ministry is full of blood purists and Fudge cares more about Dumbledore's plotting than the return of the Death Eaters." Bones said.

"What about the unicorn?" Tonks asked. "Is it Harry Potter? Do we need to alert the Hogwarts teachers?"

"I don't know but the unicorn saved my niece and six other witches. We will do everything we can to help it, particularly if we can stop Death Eaters. No word yet to your Order of the Phoenix contacts. Let's watch Dawlish more closely."

Tonks nodded. She had promised Madame Bones that the DMLE was her first priority and not Dumbledore's organization. In return, Bones organized an elite group, supported by Croaker, to be more proactive against the Dark Lord, regardless of the dangers from the Ministry. Amelia Bones had swore that she would go down fighting and Tonks was happy to be on board.

* * *

The true head of Malfoy Manor glowered with displeasure as Macnair and Dawlish stammered about their failed efforts to find any trace of the unicorn. There were no trails that a wizard could take into the depths of the Forbidden Forest, and no signs that the beast would reappear near the castle. Voldemort had Death Eaters eager to do his bidding but not enough that he could waste them trying to kill an unicorn in a dense impassable forest.

"I would fly to the Forest and bring you back his head." a witch with thick dark hair, dark eyelashes, and dark eyes said. Bellatrix Lestrange was not the most subtle person, and her palpable disdain for the incompetence of other Death Eaters was clear to all.

"No, Bellatrix. Harry Potter is not the callow milk sop he was in the graveyard. He might impale you with a horn when you land." Voldemort had seen pictures of the brutal injuries inflicted on Greyback and Scabior. The black unicorn would be equally vicious in the forest.

"Master, why not repeat Umbridge's actions? Lure him out by threatening the witches. She could send them to detention again near the Forest." Bellatrix said.

"Snape has told me that even Dumbledore is not so thick headed to repeat that debacle. Any attempt of Umbridge to give detention will be reviewed by her fellow teachers." Voldemort said.

"Are there other ways to grab the witches? We need them to bait a trap for the unicorn. Surely they must leave the castle at some point." Bella said.

"Excellent, Bellatrix. You are indeed my right hand." Voldemort said. The witch preened in her master's praise. "Hogwarts still has those silly weekends in Hogsmeade. You will lead my Death Eaters and capture those witches then."

* * *

Hermione raised her bleary eyes from **The Standard Book of Spells Year 5**. She had spent many hours over the last three days making endless notes on five years worth of spells - all the jinxes, hexes, defensive spells, and any charms that could be used in battle. Unfortunately, that meant most of the charms. Even utility spells like **aguamenti** would be used to distract opponents. The Gryffindor House elves had been helpful, delivering books on offensive and defensive magic, but she still had to formulate study sheets, teaching plans, and visual guide to spells. This was in addition to recruiting, finding a meeting place, and keeping up on her prefect duties and her ten classes, all of which were covering advanced OWL material.

Hermione ran her hands through her frizzy hair, and realized she was the last person in the Gryffindor Common Room, again - like yesterday and the day before. She had lost track of time, and she felt even more run down than Third Year. With the time turner, she had managed to sneak in a few naps. She had not figured out a way to avoid Umbridge's prying eyes, and she had to solve that before any mass meeting. As for sharing the workload, Ron had been completely unhelpful. When she asked Ron to take notes on the Stunning spell, the red haired wizard had dashed away to play wizard chess with himself instead.

Hermione packed up her books to go to bed. A snowy white owl flew into the room, and squatted on her collection of **Miranda Goshawk Standard Book of Spells**. Hedwig hooted at her with annoyance. Realizing her neglect, Hermione reached her fingers out to make peace. Hedwig's round amber eyes looked at her reproachfully and then the owl nipped the prefect badge with her beak and refused to relinquish the prize.

"Hedwig, I am sorry I have been so busy." Hermione started. The snowy owl raised her front leg, as if waiting for a letter. "But I don't have a letter for you." Hedwig merely stared at her without blinking.

Hermione flushed red. Despite her busy schedule, Hermione wrote her parents every week. Emma Granger had been most upset at Harry's disappearance a month ago and pressed Hermione repeatedly on why Harry had not come to London to stay with the Grangers. Hermione managed to gloss over that disturbing tale but she dreaded writing to her parents about the Bloody Halloween and had delayed doing so. No father or mother would be happy to hear a teacher almost got their child killed.

"Alright, Hedwig. I will write my mum and dad tonight." The owl hooted in agreement.

Hermione took out a quill and parchment.

_"Dear Mum and Dad. _

_Strange things have happened since I last wrote. I believe Harry is staying in the Forbidden Forest. In fact, I got into a spot of trouble, and he came to save me. He was quite brave - as always - although a bit of a daredevil, but then again he has been that way since First Year. I am perfectly okay now, although I do feel rather frazzled. I wish I could help Harry more…."_

As Hermione wrote, referring obtusely to the werewolf attack to not frighten her parents to death, her mind began to clear. Her mum had always been supportive, proud of her daughter's achievements but focused more on Hermione's health and happiness. Why exactly was she working to the bone for Dumbledore's Army? She didn't even agree with the name! Her total exhaustion resulted from a maniacal desire to protect the school. But she remembered Emma Granger's words. Don't just be smart, Hermione. Be wise too. Use all your talents, and not just sheer intelligence. She had attacked the problem with a sledgehammer, trying to pummel things into submission. She would find a better way.

There were two issues. The first was the pitiful preparation for the DADA Owl. Theory had always come easily to Hermione. Her study sheets and journals held all the material that would be on the test. The practical would be a tougher challenge. Getting better at Counter Jinxes and Defensive Spells required an attacker and a defender. The Defense Association could help, but Ron Weasley was pants at organization. She might have to spend a great deal of time keeping order at meetings of the DA. Hermione could rely on the coven though. Susan, Daphne and Tracey were skilled casters and the Bloody Halloween had made the witches closer.

The defense of the castle was a more difficult concern. For the last few nights, Hermione had been plagued by a sense of dread - that Hogwarts would be attacked. That gave the Defense Association far more urgency than the DADA OWL. Students in Hogwarts had no experience with fighting. Sure, there were mock duels, pranks, and heated exchanges but that was nothing compared to a real battle. Susan pointed out that a spell battle often resulted in death or permanent damage. Hermione did not want to see her friends die. Dumbledore, Flitwick, and even Snape were known to be excellent at dueling. If wizards had common sense, those three could have instructed the Hogwarts class at how to fight back. The problem though was Umbridge. She would never allow students to learn self defense, quite ironic since she was the Defense teacher.

Hermione wondered - what would Harry do in this situation? Something reckless, impulsive but successful. Hermione thought about the last four years. Her best friend had been placed in strange but difficult situations - through no fault of his own - but had overcome them all. He had confronted Quirrell, fought a basilisk, used a time turner to ride a hippogriff to safety. He was the only student with experience in battle, and faced Voldemort in the graveyard at the end of the Third Task. If the teachers were unwilling to help, an unicorn animagus might. She would devise a way to contact Harry somehow. Letters through Hedwig had failed, leaving the snowy owl morose at losing her master. Hermione would continue with the Defense Association but also explore other possibilities. She was not Harry Potter, flying by the seat of his pants. She needed to be Hermione and solve problems thoroughly and methodically.

Hermione rubbed the snowy owl's head gently. "I know Hed - I miss him too. Harry will come back to us someday."

She re-read the letter with a critical eye. Her parents deserved better. Hermione knew that she could not reveal everything but the truth was preferable than dissembling. She ripped up the letter and began again.

_"Dear Mum and Dad,_

_Strange things have happened at Hogwarts the last week. On Halloween, I had to use my wand to protect myself from bludgers at the Gryffindor/Slytherin quidditch game. I was given detention, along with six other witches, in the Forbidden Forest. It was frightening but Harry saved us. He disappeared again though, before the teachers came back, and I am not sure when I will see him again._

_I am worried about things at the school. The Defense Against Dark Arts class has gotten worse. I am trying to organize a group for self study but there are all sorts of obstacles. I also want to find Harry to help him. I will write again soon._

_Love,_

_Hermione"_

The muggleborn witch yawned and gave the letter to an eager Hedwig who flew into the night. Hermione walked to her dorm, refreshed, like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She did not even notice that Hedwig kept the prefect pin.

* * *

Dumbledore listened carefully to Snape's report on the recent activities of the Death Eaters. Dumbledore patted himself on the back for his foresight in recruiting Snape fourteen years ago. Like himself though, Voldemort did not trust any of his followers completely. Several Death Eaters were tasked with searching for the unicorn, and Malfoy had purchased a magical net capable of ensnaring the beast. So far, these efforts amounted to very little as no wizard was foolish enough to go hunting in the Forbidden Forest.

"He plans a trap similar to the Halloween detention to lure the beast from the Forest." Snape said. "I do not know which of the seven, but I believe they want to kidnap as many as possible."

"Does Voldemort believe that the unicorn is Harry Potter?" Dumbledore asked.

"Rookwood took the prophecy from the Ministry. Trelawney's words are that one must die at the hand of the other. The Dark Lord is not one to allow for a little boy to threaten him. He will hunt down the unicorn, if there is any chance that is Potter." Snape said.

"Even with Umbridge's support, the Death Eaters will find it hard to do so at Hogwarts. Dolores cannot assign detention without approval. Portkeys do not work in the castle. What do you think they will try, Severus?" Dumbledore asked.

The sallow potions master shrugged. "They could use potions to befuddle their wits. Cursed objects, like a necklace or a vanishing cabinet would work. They could stun them and transport them in a magical trunk, like Barty Crouch Junior. Umbridge could get members of the Inquisitorial Squad to use **Imperio** spells."

"Severus, I do not think fifth year students would resort to an Unforgiveable curse." Dumbledore chided.

"I have less confidence in the moral strength of Umbridge's crew." Snape said. "All those methods would allow them to spirit one or two witches away. But to capture all seven would be difficult if they wish to ensure the unicorn leaves the forest."

"I will direct the Order of the Phoenix to watch these witches carefully. Some of them can be stationed at the castle - Moody, Podmore, Diggle, Fletcher. They will thwart the Dark Lord's minions."

"As you wish, Headmaster." Snape doubted that Diggle or Dung were capable of thwarting a first year, let alone adult wizards desperate to execute the Dark Lord's orders. "Should we inform the witches of the danger? Madame Bones or Lord Greengrass could certainly supply more protection for their heirs."

"No, Severus, it would only frighten them after their harrowing experience a week ago. We want them to enjoy their time as children. And the witches would wonder how we knew. They might even deduce your role as a spy. Far better for us to merely watch."

* * *

"Why can't we go hunt the unicorn?" the tall albino faerie complained to his counterpart.

The second Leshay sighed. It was the third time today he had been asked the question. "The Queen ordered us to wait. She has given the net to these so called Death Eaters. Although the idea of eating Death seems a rather strange one."

Nix, the faerie carrying the horn bow and quiver of arrows, sighed. "These mortals are so slow. Why not storm the castle and seize the witches? Or go himself to the Forest. This Voldemort would rather twiddle his thumbs for years."

"You are an immortal fey. What is a year but a blink of an eye? It has been fifteen centuries since the Queen last roamed this Earth. Since she failed." Nox said.

"She did not fail. She destroyed Camelot." Nix replied. "She brought a shameful end to the court of King Arthur. Father killed son, sworn brothers fought each other, and friend betrayed friend."

"She was exiled - banished like a pixie back to **Androlynne**. She was forced to abandon the dream and denied her rightful rule. That is why the Queen waits - to take the measure of enemies. This time, we will not rush until success is certain." Nox said.

"Except that time was different. Fifteen hundred years ago, heroes roamed the Earth. A great wizard. A wise king. Knights who were flawed but brave. There is no Arthur, Merlin or Morgan LeFay. The old heroes are gone and the new ones have not risen." Nix pulled on the bow, sighting the arrow with his coal black eyes. "The unicorn's Head will make a fine prize and if Death Eaters fail, then I shall bring it to the Queen."

* * *

Hermione Granger met the coven again in the Defense Against Dark Arts tower under the cover of privacy charms. She had been unable to find a place in Hogwarts large and discrete enough for the DA to meet. It is much easier for a small group of skilled witches capable of casting disillusionment and silencing spells to get together secretly

"So what's the deal Granger? Are you still head of Dumbledore's Army?" The blonde Slytherin witch said.

"It is the Defense Association, and yes, we are moving forward. A lot of witches and wizards are worried about learning Defense. We will hold our first meeting next weekend in Hogsmeade at the Hog's Head." Hermione said.

"Granger, people know about the DA. Ron Weasley has been bragging to people about his visionary leadership and this master tactical abilities, whatever that is. How are you going to keep anything secret?" Daphne said.

"I invented a jinx based on the **Furnunculus** Hex. If anyone voluntarily betrays the meeting place, boils will erupt on their face, forming the word "SNEAK." It will be impossible to reverse it without a countercharm. Anyone who wants to go to a meeting of the DA has to sign the parchment, making a magical promise to keep it a secret." Hermione said, taking out a long piece of empty parchment, with only The D.A. prominently inscribed on top.

"That's rather mean-spirited. Have you told anyone about the jinx?" Luna asked.

"Er, no. I thought it would surprise any spies." Hermione said.

"If you want to stop spying, you need to warn people." Susan said. "Otherwise they won't know."

"Right." Hermione agreed. She really had not been thinking clearly the last few days. She wondered if she had been confunded. Or merely overworked.

"Are you sure you want to go through this?" Tracey asked. "Even with this jinx, Umbridge may find out. You could be tracked or someone might overhear."

"Yes, a lot of students really want to learn, even the younger ones. And, I still have this feeling that Hogwarts is in danger. We may need to defend ourselves." Hermione said.

"I would rather first and second years not learn. They are not even teenagers. They shouldn't have to fight. They should just be taking regular classes." Susan said.

"What did you want to speak to the coven about?" Daphne asked.

"I know some of you don't agree with the Defense Association but we all want to protect our school. I think the best way to do it would be to find Harry. If there is an attack, we may need his help." Hermione said, noting the looks of interest from the witches present. "I have tried letters to him but Hedwig can't locate him."

'His magical signature has changed." Daphne said. "Any messenger spell would need to know what the new signature is. If you had the drop of his blood, it might work."

"I destroyed the **Draught** weeks ago." Hermione lamented.

"That's for the best. It is dangerous for a wizard to give someone a drop of their blood. It can be used to cast hexes, curses, or even brewed into potions that can control people." Tracey said.

"Granger, I still think the D.A. is a half baked idea. But the coven will help you. Tracey and I won't join but we will come to the meeting to observe. And, as for contacting Harry, there must be a way to do so - even in the Forbidden Forest." Daphne said. "We are all capable witches. We should be able to figure this out.

* * *

The Dark Lord sat in the Malfoy drawing room, contemplating the events of the last few weeks. He had never been so close to victory, not even on Halloween night fourteen years ago. After his resurrection, Voldemort expected to slowly build up his forces until he could strike in a year or two. Everything had changed when Harry Potter lost his magic. The Ministry had fallen in all but name, as dozens of pureblood officials pledged fealty. Meanwhile, Albus Dumbledore had been flummoxed and too obsessed with Harry Potter to notice the imminent danger.

Voldemort understood why now. The wily Headmaster had expected to use the young boy to defeat him. While Potter survived, he could not truly rest. Somehow, there is some strange strain of magic that would allow a 15 year old child to defeat the greatest Dark Lord of all time. Voldemort would have laughed had the events of October 31, 1981 not occured. On that Halloween, a fifteen month old baby had somehow destroyed his material body, condemning him to 10 long and dark years as a ghost. When Potter died, his reign would truly begin.

"My Lord, the mirror is ready." Lucius declared.

Voldemort turned to the Malfoy mirror and found the smug face of Dolores Umbridge and Draco Malfoy on the other side, flanked by several other students. In the back, a witch was sobbing, her face hidden behind a hood.

"My Lord." Umbridge simpered. "We have news of the mudblood's plans. They will hold a meeting at the Hog's Head in the village this Saturday. Several of the witches saved by the unicorn will be in attendance: the three Gryffindors, Luna Lovegood and Susan Bones."

"You are certain of this news?" the Dark Lord hissed.

"Marietta, come up here." A terrified witch walked up, and Umbridge jerked back her hood, showing a hideous pattern of boils and pimples that spelled out the word **SNEAK**. "This one betrayed the group to us, to save her wretched mother."

"Excellent, Madame Umbridge. You will be rewarded when Hogwarts falls under my control." The frumpy woman grinned, her mouth as wide as a toad. "You are dismissed." Voldemort issued orders for Lucius Malfoy to alert Bellatrix Lestrange and Walden Macnair. This weekend, the trap would be set. If the unicorn came, then Dawlish and Macnair would capture the creature with the net. Harry Potter would die then and there. Even if the unicorn did not come, his Death Eaters would take the witches. Luring Potter would be a simple task, and neither the kidnapped witches nor the boy would escape Malfoy Manor.

Voldemort was on the verge of complete victory but the Dark Lord was tense and troubled. This had been all too easy. Lucius Malfoy could not explain how Draco acquired the potion that stripped Potter of his powers. The net to capture the unicorn also appeared mysteriously from the goblins, and it was the perfect tool to trap a unicorn animagus. The set of events reminded him of Dumbledore's intricate and convoluted plots but the net was clearly dark magic - as dark as any horcrux. Voldemort could sense the tortured souls trapped in the gold and silver threads. Surely, Dumbledore had not created that, nor would the old wizard have given up control of his weapon given the prophecy.

Voldemort wondered who could make such powerful magical items. The magic that he had studied at Hogwarts was purely functional - cauldrons to brew potions, wands to cast jinxes, and brooms to fly. Only the most powerful creative wizards could create new magic - as he did with the horcrux. A thousand years ago, the founders of Hogwarts crafted relics - the sword, the diadem, the cup, and the locket but even there, the magic had decayed over the centuries. After all, what power did Hufflepuff's Cup truly have? It was a mere trophy for the foolish witch he murdered but it did nothing. That was not true of the faerie net. Who had created this magic and for what purpose - Why had Potter been targeted with a potion? And how had anyone know he would transform? Voldemort did not believe in coincidence. Someone must have known.

Potter, even stripped of magic, remained a thorn in his side, and an obstacle to his victory. The boy needed to be removed, permanently.

* * *

Harry Potter woke early that cool November day. He checked the Marauder's Map and watched as the castle slowly came to life. He saw names of many students - Longbottom, Weasley, Lovegood, Greengrass, Davis, Bones - as they drifted down to the Great Hall from various dorms. He saw a dot for H. Granger, sitting next to a P. Patil and a L. Brown. Harry cooked himself a quick breakfast and perused books on Ancient Runes.

Harry monitored the map religiously. He had seen Dawlish and Macnair sniffing about the edges of the Forest two weeks ago but they had disappeared. Harry remembered the unpleasant executioner who enjoyed killing innocent beasts. Harry's eyes narrowed when late morning, he saw those two names appear again on the fringes of the map. Dots of students began to drift out of the castle in the direction of Hogsmeade. Then, he saw another name that shocked him. Lestrange. Bellatrix Lestrange - who Sirius Black had claimed was the most fanatical follower of Voldemort and an insane and evil witch. She was supposed to be in Azkaban, but instead was leading Macnair, Dawlish, and several others to Hogsmeade.

Harry put away his rune book, and put the Marauder's Map into the pockets of his cloak. He transformed into a black unicorn, and galloped to the village. It was Saturday, November 29.


	9. The Second Shift

**The Second Shift**

Nymphadora Tonks ducked under the pink mannequin wearing flashy dress robes with silver stars in the window of Gladrags Wizardwear. Her disguise as a Hufflepuff student would fool John Dawlish but she wanted to avoid the gaggle of Hogwarts Fifth Years walking from the castle. That crowd was mostly Gryffindors but she spotted a few Puffs, notably Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott. The students made a right at Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, leaving High Street. Tonks stepped past the window, when to her surprise, Dawlish also turned south and followed the Fifth Years. Tonks expected Dawlish to go north to the Forbidden Forest. He had not been spotted with Macnair the past two weeks but she doubted the dull but capable auror would give up on his mission. Tonks was about to trail the group when a short husky witch with a thick black veil hurried past. She nearly gagged from the foul odor of cigar smoke and liquor and noted the grubby hands peeking out of the plain stained robes. Mundungus Fletcher. What was that smelly sneak doing here? And why was everyone going south?

Hogsmeade was a picturesque little village much loved by the students and teachers for the variety it offered. The cute little thatched shops and cottages, like Zonko's and Honeydukes, were all on High Street with only Madame Puddifoot's Tea Shop on a side street north. The southern part of the village had gone to seed, with dilapidated houses and empty store fronts.

Tonks ducked into an alley on the southern side of High Street. She waited as more students tramped past. Most were fifth years, but there were a few younger and older students, including the tall red headed Weasley twins. Her vigilance was rewarded when she saw several sinister wizards. A sour faced man limped past, hiding a glint of rusty metal in a long bundle in his right hand. Two Ministry representatives were accompanied by a pair of dark haired thin men with empty vacant stares, the tell tale sign of Azkaban. But it was the witch that caught Nymphadora's attention.

Her face was hidden in a dark hood, with only a few ringlets of thick curly black hair visible. She walked with a regal elegance, and the arrogant bearing that Tonks had seen from afar in her aunt Narcissa, and occasionally surfaced in her mum Andromeda. It was the imperious stride of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, and Tonks realized at once that this witch was also her mother's sister. Only one witch, Bellatrix Lestrange, was high in Voldemort's ranks, and she was clearly not in Azkaban any longer.

Tonks shrank back into the alley, and took out her wand. A silver jack rabbit **patronus** emerged and flew off to Amelia Bones in the Ossuary. "Urgent. Bellatrix Lestrange at Hogsmeade with Dawlish and others. May be stalking Hogwarts students." Tonks rushed after the Death Eaters, praying that her message to the DMLE Head would not be too late.

* * *

Ron Weasley grimaced when the severed boar's head on the worn out wooden sign dripped blood on his hastily shined shoes. The old wooden door opened into a small and dirty tap room, with saw dust strewn all over the floor and even on the bottom panes of the opaque and grimy windows. The entire pub smelled strongly of something that might have been goats and the odor and filth explained the lack of clients. A tall and thin wizard with a great deal of long grey hair and beard manned the bar, and bore a noticeable resemblance to the headmaster, besides his plain attire and sour disposition. Besides the milling students, there were only two customers in the Hog's Head - a wizard with bandages wrapped around his mummy like face and an out of breath witch with an absurdly long black veil. Both nursed shot glasses of bootleg firewhiskey.

"Blimey, Hermione. Couldn't you have picked a nicer pub? It is going to hard to impress people in this dump." Ron said loudly. "I need a better venue to lead."

"We are trying to be discrete for the first meeting. We will find a place in the Castle to meet in the future." Hermione answered.

"So you chose a place that no students would ever come for a meeting with 20 plus students, where everyone can see us walking in broad daylight from the main street to a pub wizards only go to at night." Luna Lovegood said calmly.

"I thought it would be easier to keep it a secret if the location was out of the way." Hermione said with a touch of distress.

"Hermione, you may have many talents, but sneakiness is not one." Susan Bones said. The other witches nodded in agreement while Ron ordered a large butterbeer in a foaming mug.

"Ron what are you doing?" Hermione asked, scandalized.

"Well, I will need to speak a lot, so I might as well wet my whistle." Ron took a giant gulp and then spat out the foam over the bar, to the great annoyance of Abeforth. "Ugh, this is full of dust. We should have gone to the Three Broomsticks, instead." The red headed boy whined.

Hermione looked apologetically while the bartender cleaned the mess up with a grimy rag, which only made the ancient bar dirtier. Hermione sighed and waited for the room to fill up. When she saw that Daphne and Tracey had snuck, and a final contingent of Hufflepuff wizards had sat down next to the Ravenclaw witches, she began.

"Umm, hi. Thank you all for coming. You know why the meeting was called. We need a real teacher. One who has experience defending against the Dark Arts." Hermione stammered.

His courage fortified by the entire mug of butterbeer, Ron Weasley jumped into the spotlight, prefect badge pinned to his robe. "Oi, I, Ron Weasley, will teach you all you need to know to defeat the OWLs and your enemies." He ignored the skeptical faces and began to drone on.

* * *

Harry Potter snuck around Hogsmeade, his mind flashing back to third year. Then, his top priority had been buying candy from Honeydukes and drinking butterbeer at The Three Broomsticks. The appeal of buying Fizzing Whizbees and Jelly Slugs meant more than the threat of his soul getting sucked out by a dementor. Of course he had his father's Invisibility Cloak, left in the castle due to a tracking charm. Was the charm already there in past years? Had Dumbledore known about his meeting with Sirius Black and only pretended to be surprised? Harry was confused about what Dumbledore knew and when. Harry received the cloak as a Christmas "gift" his first year. Harry wondered if Dumbledore suspected Quirrell and engineered the confrontation.

Harry remembered the secret passage in the Third Year that led to Honeydukes. There was a statue of a grotesque humpbacked one eyed witch, Gunhilda de Gorsemoor, on the third floor of the castle. By tapping the hump and uttering a password, a slide opened, large enough for a small boy. Harry scratched his head. It had taken a full hour for him to walk in the tunnel to the cellar of Honeydukes. It was a brisk twenty minute walk from the castle to the village. The tunnel must have been deeper or curved more than he recalled. Why would anyone carve such a long passage merely to get candy? And this was only one of the seven passages shown on the Marauder's Map. If he had been tracked through the Invisibility Cloak, Dumbledore must have known about the passages and spied on every aspect of his adventures. Harry shook his head. His paranoia may have been increasing but perhaps he was merely waking up. He had no desire to be used again, by witches and wizards who had discarded him when he lost his magic.

Harry checked the Marauder's Map. There were over twenty students in the main room, with a Greengrass and Davis in the corner, and he noticed also an A. Dumbledore, M. Fletcher, and W. Widdershins. He had never seen the Hog's Head before but Hagrid had told him Abeforth Dumbledore owned the seedy pub that Hagrid frequented on nights away from the school. Fletcher had to be Mundungus, who abandoned his post at 4 Privet Drive on the night of the dementor attack. He had no idea who Widdershins was. Harry saw seven dots approaching Hog's Head, led by three Lestranges. Hermione let him borrow** The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts** when he was recovering from the Third Task. The chapter on the Lestrange family highlighted their cruelty and penchant for torture. The three had committed unspeakable crimes in First Wizard War and Bellatrix was mad as her master, favoring the **Cruciatus** spell above all.

Harry's anger swelled, and he had a great and terrible desire to crush and kill. How dare these pureblood scum threaten his friends and innocent students. The Ministry claimed that it protected Britain from threats, yet these murderers were walking free in Hosgmeade while his innocent godfather could not even get a trial. As the Lestranges marched into the pub, Harry put away the map and transformed into a giant black unicorn. Harry broke into a run, rage building with every step. He did not see the two sets of alien coal black eyes watching eagerly from the top of a nearby shop, mesmerized at the power and grace of the mighty beast. The Leshay followed effortlessly, jumping from roof to roof, anxious for the violence to come.

* * *

"And that's how I saved the castle every year." Ron finished proudly, oblivious to the eye rolls from Hermione and many witches in the crowd. He made a broad Lockhart like gesture to the bushy haired muggleborn. "With a little bit of help of course." Ron added in the magnanimous tone that Dumbledore used at the End of the Year Feast.

"Weasley, didn't you only get an Acceptable in Year 2 and 4 of Defense Against Dark Arts?" Padma Patil asked.

"If Harry killed the basilisk, how come you didn't harvest the corpse? Isn't it worth millions to the goblins?" Cho Chang wondered.

"Can't Harry Potter crush you in everything but wizard chess?" asked the two twins, who clearly doubted their brother's recount of his exploits.

"Oi, I taught Harry everything he knows and he always asks me what to do. I am the brains behind his brawn." He said, ignoring the third member of the Golden Trio.

"What about the graveyard - what happened at the graveyard with Diggory?" an obnoxious Zacharias Smith stood up and yelled.

"What do you mean?" Ron said.

"All Dumbledore said was that Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who. If you are pulling Harry's strings, what exactly happened? How was Diggory murdered?" Zacharias asked.

A flustered Ron stalled for time. "Well, I think - He Who Must Not Be Named….."

"Oh for Merlin's sake. It is only a name. Voldemort! Voldemort ordered his Death Eater to kill Diggory." Hermione said.

A loud cackle filled the room as a crazed witch with lustrous dark hair pointed her wand at Hermione's throat. Several other wizards in Dark Robes with hideous white and silver skull masks also brandished their wands at the defenseless students. One even carried a long rusty axe in his left hand. "Silly girl." Bellatrix Lestrange sniggered. "Voldemort is more than a name. He is our Lord and Master, as you filthy mudbloods will learn."

Four Death Eaters swarmed the crowd, waving their wands with menace and taking hostages. Rodolphus Lestrange grabbed Luna Lovegood, his wand at her neck while Bellatrix threatened Hermione. Abeforth Dumbledore glared but even with his formidable skills as a duelist, he could not hex a Death Eater without hitting a student. Several wizards cowered but Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis readied their wands, hoping for a distraction to attack. Then, a giant black unicorn crashed through the door, the lightning bolt scar clear over the emerald green eyes. Harry Potter had entered the trap.

* * *

Bellatrix Lestrange cackled with glee, as Death Eaters and stunned students all turned to the unicorn. "Fool! The Dark Lord will not be defeated by a beast."

From the shadows, John Dawlish and Walden Macnair emerged, throwing the faerie net. In mid-flight, the silver and golden mesh expanded and glowed eerily with arcane malevolent energy. The net enveloped the black unicorn, and the room dropped in temperature as the dark magic sucked light and hope from the entire room. Screaming faces of faerie children materialized, whirling around the outside of the foul artifact, and their howls for help shocked even the most jaded Death Eater. The net bubbled and oozed, as the sinister silver and gold links dragged the unicorn down to his knees.

Bellatrix exulted, the mad witch's arms raised in celebration. "The Dark Lord is triumphant." She fired several red **Crucios,** laughing as the Unforgivable Curses thudded on the unicorn's skin.

Then the door burst open, and five more people sprinted into the room. Tonks, Moody, Shacklebolt, Vance, the four aurors led by a senior witch with a monocle over her right eye. "Bellatrix Lestrange, drop your wand. You are under arrest." Amelia Bones cried.

"More aurors who want to play. You can't cast a curse because you will hit your precious little babies. I can." Bella cried in a sing song voice. "**Avada Kedadra**." The green ray spat out of her wand, exploding a bar stool that Amelia levitated in the air. The other Death Eaters joined her, casting deadly curses at the aurors, as they used the bodies of Hogwarts students as cover to strike with impunity. Bones and her crew huddled for cover, near the unicorn, summoning tables and chairs to block the spells.

* * *

Harry had never felt so cold and drained of energy. Even the near dementor kiss on the Hogwarts Express and vision of his murdered mum had not left him so bereft of hope. He could see the faces of children, their ears a bit pointed like a cat, crying out in terror and pain. "She killed us to trap you. The Queen will not rest until she has you."

Around him, there were the sounds of battle, of curses and protective spells being thrown. Harry focused on the children. There were three - two girls and a boy with faint gossamer wings of different colors. Harry did not care that they were clearly not human. They were children still, and no child deserved to be sacrificed in a vile plot.

Harry raged with fury, and his magic surged, despite the confines of the net. His muscles rippled with power and his teeth elongated so that the four canines - two on top and two on bottom- jutted out like fangs even in a closed mouth. But it was the head that changed the most. Even as the giant black unicorn grew and grew, the head turned flatter and sleeker. There was no horn but a dark and deadly mane appeared - lion-like but with sharp quills dripping with toxic spine. The beast had a leopard's spotted skin - yellow with black blotches, but the grey mane overwhelmed the color of the body, and the result was a terrifying presence, an avatar of Death stalking on massive padded feet. Harry ripped apart the golden net with his vicious claws.

* * *

Amelia Bones stood up, trying to get a better angle to attack Walden Macnair. The maniac was swinging his axe at Abeforth Dumbledore who had managed to stun two Death Eaters. A thundering roar resounded behind her and Amelia turned to the source of the lusty growl. The entire room froze at the sight. The unicorn had disappeared. Behind her, there rose a nundu, far larger than any described in a Care of Magical Creatures class or magizoologist textbook. The creature was at least 14 feet from tip to tip, and the shoulder was higher than even Hagrid. The beast had puffed up its throat, the deadly gray mane billowing out, and she knew the nundu was about to breath out a toxic cloud, dripping with poison and disease. Amelia saw her death approaching and hoped only that the aurors could protect some of the students.

"Harry." Hermione Granger cried out. "Madame Bones is Susan's aunt. She is a friend."

Amelia Bones stared into the beast's emerald eyes and the prominent lightning bolt scar. The nundu snorted and turned its gaze to the young muggleborn. Bellatrix Lestrange had pinned Hermione's arm behind her back, firing hexes behind her human shield.

"Stay back. Or the mudblood suffers." Bellatrix shrieked.

The green eyes burned in anger and the nundu rose up, and then slammed both front paws into the ground, generating a massive shockwave that sent students, aurors, and Death Eaters sprawling to the ground. The wooden boards on the dingy floor shattered, spewing sawdust into the air. In the confusion, Hermione crawled toward the glowing green eyes and the dark watch foolishly pursued. The nundu flicked his right paw, and backhanded Bellatrix into a rickety staircase, her wand flying when her right arm shattered. Bellatrix reached awkwardly with her left hand but before she could touch the portkey, the nundu swatted the staircase, and the steps collapsed, burying the witch in wooden rubble and dust. Daphne and Tracey disarmed two Death Eaters and the aurors, with help from a few other brave witches, stunned the rest.

Amelia cautiously assessed the scene, gripping her wand tightly in her right hand. There was an enormous nundu in the middle of the taproom stalking Bellatrix Lestrange, like a cat playing with a mouse. Even twenty five years later, Amelia could recall the Care of Magical Creatures NEWT. No adult nundu had ever been defeated by less than a hundred wizards working together - and this was a monstrous specimen, many times larger than the leopard or jaguar sized creature described in Newt Scamander's **Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them**.

"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione asked as she approached without fear. Amelia blinked as the nundu gazed fondly at the bushy haired muggleborn. Then everything went to hell.

* * *

Two arrows of pure light flew through the air into the big cat's side. A tall lithe figure sprang from the sitting room upstairs and halfway in the leap, a shining two handed spear appeared out of thin air. With incredible speed, the albino elf stabbed the nundu several times in the shoulder, and blood dripped from the deep gashes.

"Surrender, and we will bring you to her alive." the spearman cried as the whirling lance blocked the cat's claws. The second attacker apparated onto the tap floor, raining arrows from a horn bow. The nundu ducked and dodged with alacrity but a few bolts still landed.

Amelia wasn't certain what was going on, but she would not see her niece's rescuer slain out of hand. She and the aurors fired multiple hexes at the spearman. The elf contorted, bending and twisting so fast that the willowy body blurred, the rays passing harmlessly into the wall. She had never seen anyone so quick, as the elf pirouetted and dodged the curses with ease.

"You cannot defeat us. We can only be slain when the two worlds connect forever." the elf cried, jabbing again and again at the nundu with the deadly spear. More arrows flew through the air, and at this range, the hunter could hardly miss such a large beast. The hunters spared no attention to witches and wizards, focused only on their prey.

The nundu shuddered in agony, and transformed back to a young man, bleeding from a dozen places, in the shoulders, sides, and chest. But this was not the Harry Potter of Hogwarts. This boy had untidy black hair, startling green eyes, and the famous scar but he was taller, broader, and stronger with rippling muscles and barely suppressed rage. He stared at the two Leshay with cold fierce eyes and a malevolent alarming grin. The two hunters felt a frisson of fear, a feeling only the Queen and the greatest of the tane had ever evoked.

"Submit, mortal. You have no.. " Before Nix could finish his words, Harry rushed forward, rolling on the ground toward the spearman. Nox the archer held up, unable to get a clean shot. Harry rose and transformed to a black unicorn, the ivory horn piercing Nix's right thigh. The unicorn rocked his head rapidly from side to side and the razor sharp point severed both legs, and pale blood splattered on the sawdust laden ground as a shocked Nix screamed. The black unicorn rose, the bloody horn pointed directly at the archer. Nox continued the onslaught of arrows but the predator had already become prey. The unicorn charged, head and body weaving and dodging the darts of light until the beast was nearly on top of the hunter. Harry jumped high in the air and turned back to a boy as he landed behind the Leshay's back. He grabbed the horn bow and twisted the long string around the neck, suffocating Nox. The Leshay jerked violently and attempted to escape but the strong remorseless hands held on, strangling the archer.

"Stop, Harry." Dumbledore cried, shooting a **stupefy** curse from the Elder Wand. The Headmaster of Hogwarts had arrived in the pub, accompanied by the four Heads of House. The red beam struck, and the slight reprieve allowed the elf to twist from Harry's grasp. Nox fell gasping to the ground, holding his hands to a deep bloody mark where the bowstring had almost severed his throat. "Harry, you cannot turn to the dark side." Dumbledore thundered.

Harry Potter turned to Dumbledore and laughed. It was not the mad cackle of Bellatrix Lestrange but the contempt in his chuckle came through loud and clear. "What do you know about the dark, Dumbledore?"

"My boy, I am certain that we can figure this out." The headmaster kept his wand out. "Nurse Pomfrey can examine you at Hogwarts with the help of the professors."

"No. You threw me out of your school before. I am not your boy, Dumbledore." Harry Potter tossed aside the bow, his full attention on the cluster of teachers and headmaster.

"You must return. I fear that you are being corrupted by the potion, or the Forbidden Forest." Dumbledore insisted.

"Corruption? And what about you - Headmaster. Did you know the Death Eaters planned to attack me? Did your spies alert you of Dawlish and Macnair stalking the castle grounds? Did you realize that they might attack your students to lure me here?" The bitterness in Harry's voice pierced the crowd, as many wondered about the truth of the accusations.

"I am sorry, Harry. You are clearly unhinged. I must insist." Dumbledore said, his voice exuding great sorrow, as he pointed the Elder Wand and readied a spell.

"Albus, don't be a fool." Abeforth cried from behind the wreckage of the bar, bottles of whiskeys broken and leaking onto the torn floor. "I don't need the rest of my pub destroyed."

"Headmaster, do not provoke Mister Potter. He helped defeat the Death Eaters." Amelia Bones yelled.

* * *

Harry transformed into an enormous black and yellow nundu, the neck puffed out, poison visible on the spines of his mane. The many wounds suffered against the Leshay had already begun to heal. The nundu slashed his right paw playfully through the ropes of Dumbledore's **Incarcerous**, and then took a deep breath. Flitwick moved first, desperately casting a** Protego Maxima**. The other heads of houses, including a McGonagall shocked at meeting a magical animagus, realized their danger and followed with several variants of the **Protego**. Multiple overlapping shields formed in front of the teachers and Dumbledore summoned a glowing ball of crackling energy, ready to be used for defense or offense. Then the nundu screamed, the howl of sonic energy slamming and obliterating the shield wall. The booming cry shattered windows and exploded mugs and bottles and the students and aurors dove for cover from the shards of glass flying through the air. Those directly in the path of the sonic boom suffered far worse. Blood ran from their burst ear drums and they staggered, dizzy and nauseous, as they wobbled on shaky legs. Only Flitwick, who had escaped the brunt of the blast due to his short height, managed any semblance of a defence. The nundu chuckled and approached, licking his fangs.

"Harry." Hermione cried. She had been behind the nundu and unaffected by the savage roar. "You can't attack the teachers. Please." the witch pleaded, grabbing the beast's front right leg.

Daphne Greengrass stood up, relatively unscathed from the fracas. "Potter, even if the Headmaster knew, the teachers may not. You came to save us - not kill them." Susan, Tracey, and Luna emerged, their open hands showing no intention of attacking the beast.

Madame Bones signaled for their aurors to stand down. Even the famously combative Moody had no desire to engage the nundu. Several pops of portkeys could be heard as the Death Eaters that were conscious fled. Abeforth gingerly walked over to his struggling brother who had sat down hard on the floor.

The fey archer walked over and propped his crippled partner up against a table. The archer summoned the severed legs and the spearman attached the bloody limbs to his stumps. The witches and wizards present looked in shock as the once maimed Leshay rose to his feet, the legs whole. The two albino elves made no effort to pick up their weapons, only turning dead black eyes to the nundu. Nix spoke in an unearthly voice, devoid of emotion.

"The Queen of Air and Darkness will not release you, Harry Potter. No one in a thousand years has escaped her grasp. She will bring the First World back and all who oppose her will be destroyed. Serve as her champion or suffer endless woe."

Harry had turned back to the young man with Hermione beside him. "I am done with following others. I defeated you, so why should I fear her?"

"Then you are a fool. We are nothing compared to the Queen. When she comes, you will fall, and know why darkness will always consume the light. When next we meet, we will unleash the tane. You will see what destruction truly is in the First World. Fare well, Harry Potter." The two leshay faded away, and their blood and weapons vanished as well.

* * *

"Harry, are you okay?" Hermione examined her best friend more closely, noting that all the wounds had completely healed on his rugged masculine body.

It was an odd question to ask the boy who had almost obliterated the pub, Amelia thought. Moody had cuffed the two unconscious Death Eaters, Macnair and Dawlish, but not before stunning both again and ordering Tonks and others to cast multiple **Incarcerous** spells. "Mister Potter, can you tell me what just happened?" Madame Bones asked.

"I really don't know, Mrs. Bones. I came to rescue my friends from Bellatrix." Harry said. "I have to go, Hermione. I don't want to deal with Dumbledore or his servants. I won't be controlled." He gently pushed the bushy haired muggleborn away.

"Potter." Daphne cried. "Who is the Queen? What does she want and what is this First World?"

"I don't know. The Queen made that." Harry pointed at the silver and golden net, now ripped into pieces. "It is darker magic than I have ever encountered, and the souls of faerie children were ripped apart to create it. She must be very powerful, perhaps even more than Voldemort."

"Good Bye, Hermione. Try not to get into too much trouble without me." Harry smirked as he hugged the brown haired girl. Harry stretched his arms out, and motioned for space as he prepared to shift.

"Harry, my boy." Dumbledore croaked from his knees. "You must return. Our world needs you."

Harry snorted. "I renounce you, Dumbledore. I reject your claims on me. Find some other idiot to manipulate."

Harry turned into the great black unicorn. He bowed his head to Madame Bones, and nodded to Hermione and a few other witches of the coven. Luna Lovegood darted forward and on her tippy toes, brushed the unicorn's sleek mane. Harry turned his head for a moment, quirking his left eyebrow at the dreamy Ravenclaw. Then the unicorn sprang high in the air, like a great cat, landing silently near the broken door and galloped away so quickly that it seemed like a dream.

* * *

Amelia surveyed the ruined Hog's Head Pub. To her great relief, students were bruised and frightened, but no one had suffered major spell damage. Hermione, Susan, Daphne and Tracey whispered together in a small circle, while Luna Lovegood helped Filius Flitwick levitate the rubble off trapped students. Nurse Pomfrey had come from Hogwarts with several other teachers and they attended to the shell shocked headmaster and professors. Hagrid carried the wounded out, complaining that he had missed the nundu animagus. The DMLE aurors called for more backup. Emergency healers, Unspeakables, and aurors poured into Hogsmeade, followed by an eager Rita Skeeter and her pet photographer, Bozo. Amelia prepared to assign interviews for her aurors to question the dozens of witnesses in the pub. She realized that she also would have to give testimony.

Harry Potter was alive. He was not only the black unicorn who saved Susan and the others on Halloween but also could transform into a nundu. And he was not a regular nundu, deadly enough to kill an entire village. No, Harry was larger and more dangerous. There was a Dark Queen involved, and two insanely fast faerie hunters with strange powers serving the Queen. That revelation made Bellatrix Lestrange's presence seem mundane. How did the mad witch escape Azkaban, and what did it mean for the Dark Lord's other servants?

Amelia sighed. This would mean a great deal of paperwork. She ignored the shouted questions of Rita Skeeter and other journalists. As she turned, she also missed Hermione and the other witches of the coven placing fragments of the golden net into their pockets. Amelia shrugged off a quick scan from Healer Andromeda Tonks before telling her four aurors to find out exactly why these students were at such a shady pub, and how did the Death Eaters know where to attack?

Amelia knew she would have to personally deal with Albus Dumbledore. The Headmaster, Chief Warlock, and Supreme Mugwump would no doubt pretend to have no idea of what happened.

"Boss Lady, I found something." Nymphadora Tonks said, waving a long piece of parchment.

"Now, Nymphadora - Amelia deserves to be called Madame Bones." The healer of St. Mungo's told her excitable daughter. Amelia held back her chuckle at the frown on Tonk's face to her mother's gentle reprimand.

The parchment held the names of many fifth years but on top were initials in bold, D.A. The first name under that title was the barely legible scrawl of Ron Weasley.

"What does D.A. stand for?" the formidable head of the DMLE asked the red headed boy.

"Dumbledore's Army." the red headed wizard blurted out. The groans of his fellow students were not needed to make Ron realize that he had made a grievous error.


	10. A Momentary Bout of Sanity

**A Momentary Bout of Sanity**

"I had nothing to do with this meeting." Albus Dumbledore insisted to a skeptical Amelia Bones. The investigation had moved from Hogsmeade to Hogwarts to accommodate the healers from St. Mungo's Hospital. Nurse Pomfrey was overwhelmed by the sheer number of injuries reported and while no student appeared severely wounded, the healers were wary on any encounter with the fearsome nundu.

"The students called themselves Dumbledore's Army. You are Dumbledore. How could you not know?" Amelia said. Her most trusted aurors, circulating around the emergency command post in the Nursing Wing nodded in agreement.

The Headmaster sighed in exasperation. "I was aware of the growing frustration with Madame Umbridge. Even by the standards of Defense Against Dark Arts, she is a very poor teacher. Certainly, I knew that students might attempt to learn on their own, or look to each other for instruction."

"If she was such a poor teacher, then why don't you reprimand or replace her?" Bones asked.

"Filling the Defense Against Dark Arts position has become even more difficult since the problems of the last few years. And Hogwarts has always given teachers freedom to handle their class. The school has nurtured talents in many different areas of magic. I believe instructors can learn from experience, just like students." Dumbledore said.

"Boss Lady. Take a look." Nymphadora Tonks bought over a short mousy haired wizard with brown eyes wearing a Gryffindor scarf. The nervous boy hiked up the right sleeve of his shirt, exposing words cut over and over into his flesh -_ I shall not tell lies_. "Umbridge forced him to write in a blood quill. Because he said Harry Potter was a great hero who saved the school."

"I had no idea she would do so such a thing." Dumbledore said.

"Had you known, what would you have done? Would you have said anything?" Bones said.

"At Hogwarts, teachers are allowed to punish their students." Dumbledore said somberly.

"For telling the truth?" Tonks snorted. The witch's respect for authority dropped further.

"Tonks, take him to Hippocrates Smethwyck. He has wound creme that reduces scarring from jinxs." Madame Bones said. The bubble gum haired auror took Colin Creevey away. "Dumbledore, why is it you never know what is going on in your school? Your students are forming an army. Otherwise they wouldn't be meeting in some dingy little pub on Saturday. How did Bellatrix Lestrange and Dawlish know that they would be in Hogsmeade?"

"I certainly don't know. I thought the DMLE monitored Azkaban. And isn't Dawlish one of your aurors?" Dumbledore replied pointedly.

A tall aristocratic witch with perfect features and long blond tresses stormed into the cordoned off corner. "How could you allow my princess to come to harm? And for a second time in less than a month!" Esme Greengrass said. Amelia Bones decided against saying that the very slightly injured Daphne had handled herself well, disarming Walden Macnair. She slipped away, allowing the outraged society wife to berate the Headmaster. Amelia Bones had better things to do with her time, and Dumbledore would never change his obstinate ways.

* * *

Amelia assembled her tired team an hour later. "Have we learned anything more? About how the Death Eaters knew? Or why the meeting was at Hog's Head?"

"Dawlish clammed up. But he gave away that they weren't certain if the unicorn would appear. Seems they were planning to kidnap the witches involved in the Bloody Halloween." Moody said. Amelia blanched at a plot against her niece and her friends. She would have to inform the other parents at once.

"The net defies any attempts at analysis. But soul magic was certainly part of the creation. Potter may be right about the faerie children but we cannot tell. Using innocent children to bind a unicorn is clever but vile and the knowledge to do so is beyond anything we know - or even the Dark Lord." Croaker said.

"So how did Dawlish and Macnair get the net?" Amelia asked.

"The potion that Draco threw on Potter was completely unknown. And so is this net." Tonks said. "Could they have come from the same source?"

"Aye - That makes sense Lassie. If the Dark Lord created this net, we might as well blow our buttocks off with our own wands. But who is the source? And do they have any other tricks up their sleeve?" Moody asked.

"Almost certainly, Alastor. It can't be a coincidence that Potter was targeted twice. But let's figure out what we can truly know. Not simply speculate." Bones said.

"I spoke to Fudge's office." Emmeline Vance says. "The prisoners from Azkaban escaped two months ago, but the Ministry did not want to frighten the populace. So Albert Runcorn and Tiberius Travers decided it would be kept secret even from the DMLE."

"So much for the inescapable prison." Moody sighed.

"Hermione Granger told everyone who signed the parchment, that if they betrayed the DA, they would be cursed. Marietta Edgecombe's face erupted in Boils that spell out SNEAK. The poor witch looks horrendous, like her acne exploded and mutated." Shacklebolt said.

"Marietta - that's Azelma's girl. Edgecombe works in Floo Regulation which used to report to Dolores Umbridge." Amelia Bones said. "Where is Umbridge? Has anyone interviewed her?"

"Umbridge was ranting and raving to Rita Skeeter about how she blamed the entire school for coddling students, and how uppity half bloods and muggleborns should be grateful to even study magic, not complain about her wonderful teaching skills." Vance said.

"Wow, even for Hogwarts, that is a new low." Bones said, wondering how in Merlin's name, Dumbledore got away with such bad teachers. Then again, Bones knew there were many Death Eaters on the aurors, and she had been unable to sack any of them.

"Boss Lady, Hermione Granger organized the meeting." Tonks said. "She wanted to meet in the Castle but Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad kept hounding the Fifth Year Gryffindors. She claims the DA was supposed to the Defense Association, and not Dumbledore's Army. She is worried about Hogwarts coming under attack."

Susan had mentioned in letters home that her new friend was frantic. "Did Miss Granger explain why she believes that?" Amelia asked.

Tonks shook her head. "No - she was frazzled, almost like she had been confunded. In the past month, she organized the DA, did all the prefect work for her and Ron Weasley, and reviewed for 10 OWLs. Hermione is afraid though. If the Death Eaters attacked them to lure Harry out, why couldn't they also attack the families of students? Her parents are muggles and wouldn't be able to defend themselves. She pointed out that the Potters had been attacked, even though their cottage had magical wards."

That was an excellent point, Amelia thought. Voldemort had exterminated entire families in the last war, not sparing children or the elderly. Wizards had clung to a hope that the Death Eaters would follow the protocols of combat and instead the Dark Lord's forces had used murder, rape, and **Imperios** to terrorize all of Britain. Bellatrix Lestrange would happily kidnap or kill muggle or magical parents to complete a mission. "The DMLE is already stretched too thin and would be castigated for using precious manpower to protect muggles. However, all of you have been working hard. If you need to take a break meeting the Grangers, or visiting Ottery St. Catchpole, Greengrass Manor or the Ossuary, you are more than welcome. I personally would consider that a good use of time, even if it isn't official. Anything to catch Death Eaters by surprise."

The aurors nodded in agreement. Shacklebolt, Moody and Vance had lost friends in the last war and Tonks wanted to bring down her insane aunt. They would not sit around and let Voldemort be the aggressor, and kill innocents with impunity.

* * *

Hermione Granger had never thought highly of the Daily Prophet but even she was astounded by the brazen headlines. **ATTACK OF THE KILLER NUNDU** dominated the first page. This was followed by **TALES OF TERROR - Harry at the Hog's Head** and the most ridiculous article - **Harry Potter: Powerless Glory Hound Or Vicious Man Beast** by Rita Skeeter who had quoted Dolores Umbridge, Draco Malfoy, and Severus Snape in rendering her adamant opinion that the young innocent witches were not safe from the rapacious Hogsmeade Horror.

"I can't believe people believe this crap." Hermione ranted to her fellow Fifth Years as they poured over shared copies of the paper at dinner. She pointed to the picture of a feline accompanying Skeeter's hit piece. "That doesn't even look like a nundu. It is an ugly kneazle from the Magical Menagerie." Crookshanks hissed angrily at his mistress and the Daily Prophet. "No, Crooks. You are not ugly. You are so cute." Hermione said in a babyish tone, calming her ruffled familiar.

Across the table, Ron Weasley shuddered. He was struck by a vision of Hermione as a crazy Cat Lady, with dozens of the kneazles in her home. As a muggleborn, she needed to be educated about the realities of the magical world. "Hermione, Skeeter is right."

"What?" the shocked muggleborn witch said.

"Nundus are killers - terrifying creatures of darkness. Their breath can wipe out entire villages. Think about it. Entire villages of happy Africans. Singing and dancing to praise the White Man, and instead savaged by the nundu." Ron said patiently as he corrected her ignorance.

"Happy Africans praising the White Man? Where did you read this nonsense?" Hermione asked.

"**Babbity Rabbity and the Imperial Conquest**. It talks about how Africans and Asians were grateful for their wise white masters because they were unable to rule or defend themselves. The white men had to eradicate nundus to save happy African slaves. They destroyed habitats and killed nundu babies to make Africa safe." Ron said.

Before Hermione could sputter her outrage, the red headed wizard squealed, hit by two stinging charms from his older brothers. Ron rubbed his backside. "Oi! What was that for?"

"You should be grateful. We saved you from Angelina and Alicia." The twins said. The two older dark skinned witches glared at the youngest Weasley boy. They clearly did not agree with the official Ministry of Magic Line on the British adventures in Africa.

"Well Ron is Ron." Luna said. "But nundus are dangerous. Europe has banned the import of nundu cubs for decades. There hasn't been a reported sighting in Britain for fifty years."

"Nundus enjoy eating young and beautiful witches. A nundu ate Fergalicious the Delicious when she tried to breed nundus for their fur and milk." Seamus read from the Skeeter article.

"Who in their right mind would breed a nundu for milk?" Hermione asked scathingly. The other Gryffindors pointed to Hagrid, who was engrossed in the Daily Prophet. "Oh, for the love of Merlin." Hermione turned to her bouncy Ravenclaw friend. "Luna, it is nice to see you but what are you doing over at the Gryffindor Table?

"Everyone in Ravenclaw House claims that Harry has turned dark. They drove me away when I said they shouldn't believe species stereotypes." Luna said.

"Of course he is turning dark. First a black unicorn. And now a nundu." Ron moaned. "That is what happens without my guidance. Your best mate becomes a monstrous killer."

"Harry didn't kill anyone at Hogsmeade. He defended me from Bellatrix and the aurors managed to take down the other Death Eaters." Hermione said.

"We need to control him." Ron said. "AHA! I have got it. I know what we need to do. We need…. " Ron dramatically paused before announcing his ingenious idea. "To all become animaguses!"

"Huh?" was the collective response.

"We can all become animagi. Everyone in Gryffindor House - the house of the heroes. We will be the DAA - Dumbledore's Animagus Army. I am sure my form will be something imposing - like a phoenix or a lion." Ron said.

"Well, you are definitely full of bull." the Weasley twins chortled, high fiving each other for a rather weak joke.

"Do you think I can become an animagus?" Seamus asked. "Maybe I will be a unicorn too."

Hermione settled on her best bossy voice. "Ron, it is incredibly difficult to become an animagus. Professor McGonagall studied for years to discover her true form, and she has a mastery in Transfiguration. Also, most forms are much smaller - like cats, or dogs, or rats. Wizards don't have the raw magical power to become a large animal, let alone a magical beast."

"If Harry can be a Class 5 creature, I can be one too." Ron said stubbornly.

"That is Harry. He is not like other wizards." Hermione said.

"What? You think Harry is better than me? You are always putting me down." The red head ranted. "Harry is a better flier. Harry is a better dueler. Harry suffers more. Harry is nicer."

Luna interrupted the diatribe. "All those things are true, and that's a good thing. Without Harry, we would have died twice in the last month." Hermione couldn't have said it any better.

Before Ron could explode further, a certain blond haired pureblood prat strutted over, followed by two oafish lackeys. Hermione saw that both Daphne and Tracey had followed the three Slytherin twits, ready to support her if needed. When he arrived at the Gryffindor table, Draco brandished the Daily Prophet, pointing to the Skeeter by-line. "Vicious Man Beast!" the Slytherin crowed. "How do you Lions feel that your Golden Boy is just a mindless killer?"

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Hermione asked in a bored tone, pre-empting any response from Ron or her other classmates.

"Harry Potter - your hero has been exposed. And now he is just a monster that Walden Macnair will be ordered to behead." Draco said.

"Macnair has about as much chance of beheading a nundu as Ron has of scoring higher in the OWLs than Hermione." Luna said.

"Malfoy, are you expecting us to thank you?" Hermione asked.

"What are you talking about, mudblood?" Draco sneered.

"Well, the nundu is the king of giant cats and one of the deadliest beasts that ever lived. And the unicorn is the noblest creature of all, the king of good creatures. You gave Harry the potion. He now has the ability to transform in ways that Professor McGonagall could not even imagine. With enemies like you, who needs allies? You have made him more powerful than ever. With your pathetic attempts on his life, Harry will rule the world. Thanks Malfoy. Do the other Slytherins know exactly what you have done?" Hermione said.

The blond haired prat flushed redder than a Weasley and opened his mouth to retort. When no witty or even crass remarks emerged, Draco stomped back to his table to the mocking laughter of the Gryffindors and even the other houses. The Slytherins were silent but their eyes showed clear displeasure at such buffoonery from their alleged Prince. Crabbe and Goyle slinked away, and even they were embarrassed

"That was quite a burn." Luna said.

"All true. Draco's potion has unleashed things the twit couldn't imagine. But we don't understand it either." Hermione sighed.

"Well, Hermione - there is only one possible response." Luna said.

"To the Library." Hermione replied fondly, and the two witches left. Susan, Tracey and Daphne Greengrass discretely followed, as did Tonks under her cover as a studious Ravenclaw.

* * *

Andromeda Tonks bade farewell to Nurse Pomfrey before taking a floo from Hogwarts to the Three Broomsticks. She had tried to convince her stubborn daughter to come home but even four years after her graduation, Nymphadora preferred sneaking around Hogwarts. Andromeda easily saw through her disguise as a Ravenclaw - despite her magical talent and decent grades, Nymphadora had never been the most studious witch. She went to the library without any books, parchment, or quill - which no self respecting Claw would do on Saturday night.

Andromeda pretended to sip a mug of hot foaming butterbeer as she watched the floo for any disguised Death Eaters. She had always suspected that Bellatrix would escape Azkaban. Fourteen years ago, the Lestranges had claimed that the Dark Lord would rise and reward them for their loyalty. So when Harry Potter declared that Voldemort had returned, she had taken steps to protect herself. She carried a portkey, a bezoar, a protective amulet, healing potions, a silver canister, and a second wand, all easily available on mokeskin pouches with auto summoning charms. She would not survive a full fledged attack by the Dark Lord and his forces but she would not fall prey to a few Death Eaters, like her close friends Alice and Frank Longbottom. Their fate was a tragedy and even more so for their son, Neville.

Behind the calm stately exterior, her thoughts churned as she considered the day's events. The treachery of the Ministry was no surprise as many aurors, including Dawlish, believed in pure blood supremacy. She knew Amelia suspected Ministry colleagues of divided loyalties but Fudge's opposition prevented her from cleaning house. The attack confirmed Voldemort's return. Years ago, when she attended Hogwarts, the Dark Lord's forces had attacked Hogsmeade, murdering Jacob Fortescue, the founder of the Ice Cream Parlour. She suspected Lestrange and Malfoy behind that terrorist attack, but her sisters had refused to listen. Of course, the most important piece of the puzzle was Harry Potter and how he was capable of transforming into a unicorn AND a nundu. Andromeda arrived after the attack, but Amelia had been kind enough to let her enter the DMLE Pensieve.

Andromeda didn't care about the magical experts who declared that such a transformation violated Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration. Those twits argued that it must have been a group hallucination powered by a Mass Confundus spell. She paid no attention to the debate whether Harry Potter had turned dark and that nundus were African hellspawn, only a shade better than a corrupted unicorn. No, Andromeda was a Black and her ancestors who had built the great Noble and Most Ancient House of Black cared far more about magical power. The nundu had flicked away Bellatrix Black like a fly. Had the two faerie hunters not intervened, her sister would have been crippled or slain, possibly devoured. Potter then faced the two hunters with astounding speed and cunning. And then there was Dumbledore. Andromeda did not like the Headmaster but the power of the ancient wizard could not be denied. The nundu had disabled the Headmaster and four other powerful witches and wizards with a scream. If Potter accepted her advice and guidance, Andromeda could destroy Voldemort and her insane sister.

Andromeda made her way to the nondescript Tonks home on the edge of London. It had a small backyard with a garden but the unremarkable split level house was simple and middle class. Andromeda sighed. She wasn't unhappy with Ted or Nymphadora, despite her daughter's unwillingness to accept such a charming name. Andromeda did not need manors or fancy society balls. She missed power - the power to affect and change the direction of magical Britain. She was merely a bystander and she feared becoming a victim. Her grandfather, Arcturus Orion Black, wielded enormous influence decades ago in the Grindelwald Wars. Few witches were better equipped to play the Game of Thrones than Andromeda Black.

Andromeda shut down her musings when she sensed her wards had been triggered. Someone was hiding near the house, and she doubted it was her oft absent husband or little Nymphie. She palmed her wand and entered her home. Andromeda sat in her drawing room waiting until she heard footsteps in the yard. She stood up, took out the canister, opened the back door, and tossed the silver cylinder. Black smoke billowed out and Andromeda shot stunning charms at the coughs, only stopping when the yard was silent again. A large black German shepherd was lying on his side next to a shabbily dressed wizard with flecks of gray in his light brown hair. Rolling her eyes, she cast **Incarcerous** on both Intruders before aiming a **Stinging** charm at the dog's buttocks. A quite human yelp of pain broke the silence.

"Sirius Orion Black, you mangy cur. Get out of my bushes." Andromeda said.

Andromeda dragged Sirius Black and Remus Lupin back to the drawing room with **Mobilicorpus** charms. She had confiscated both of their wands and offered them cups of tea, now that the dog reverted back to his human form.

"Andy, don't be frightened. We are not here to harm you." Sirius said, bound tightly in his chains with only his right hand free, clutching a crumpet. "I am not a Death Eater. I was framed..."

"I know, Sirius." Andromeda said.

"What? How - Dumbledore hasn't asked you to be in the Order of the Phoenix." Remus said.

"My daughter has been involved in your idiotic order. When I saw her for tea one day, she complained about tripping over a troll-leg umbrella stand. It wasn't very hard to figure out that was at 12 Grimmauld Place, even if the house vanished this summer. If she was at Grimmauld, you must control the family wards - even if Lucius Malfoy claims the Black proxy." Andromeda said to a gobsmacked Sirius. Nymphadora might excel at Concealment and Disguise but she was rubbish at secrecy. "Sirius, why are you sneaking around my backyard?"

"Andy, I know you were at Hogsmeade. I need to know what happened to Harry!" Sirius said.

"That is not why I asked. Why are you sneaking around? Why didn't you just appear at my front door like a normal person as a human, and not as a dog." Andromeda said.

"I am a fugitive, Andy. There is still a kiss on sight order. I came from Islington to your house to avoid detection." Sirius said seriously.

"Why can't you get a trial? If you are part of the Order, you didn't betray the Potters." she said.

"Dumbledore says it can't be done. It is too risky." Remus chimed in.

Andromeda rolled her eyes at the stupidity of wizards. "Why? He is the Chief Warlock. Is he as bad at that job as he is as Headmaster or leading your idiotic order? And what do you need Dumbledore for? Can't you ask Amelia Bones - wouldn't she push for a fair trial? Or give an interview to the Wizarding Wireless Network to clear your name?"

Remus and Sirius looked at each other, wondering why they hadn't thought of such simple solutions. Andromeda cast a powerful **Finite** spell, dispelling both sets of chains. She made no offer to return their wands.

"As for Harry Potter, I came after the Hogsmeade incident was over. But Amelia was kind enough to show me a pensieve of her memories. His nundu form is extremely powerful. I healed Minerva McGonagall and Pomona Sprout. Harry's yowl shattered both sets of eardrums through four protego shields."

"So he really is a nundu and a unicorn. It is not a **confundus** spell?" Remus asked.

"He is much larger than a regular nundu - almost twice as large. And his unicorn form is also gigantic. Harry looks older than a fifteen year old. The magic of his animagus forms must be changing his human body. He is taller than James now, and faster and stronger."

"How do you know that, Andromeda?" Sirius asked. "The Daily Prophet only talked about the terrifying nundu and the destruction of a beloved Hogsmeade landmark by the African beast."

Andromeda snorted. "The Ministry censors the Prophet. The nundu was about to finish Bella off. But then two faerie hunters jumped into the scene, babbling about some Queen. They were trying to capture Harry but he transformed back into a human, and then he defeated those two. He might have killed them had Dumbledore not interfered." Judging by the shock on the two wizards' faces, they had heard nothing of this.

"My Godson is being hunted by faeries and a Queen?" a dumbfounded Sirius asked. "Remus, we need to help him."

"I am sure Dumbledore will have ideas." Remus said.

"Sirius, if you want to help Harry, you need to actually help - not rely on Dumbledore and his lapdogs. I will get you a fair trial. Here is what I need." The elegant aristocratic witch began.

* * *

Severus Snape's head still rang the next morning. If that lousy brat was still at Hogwarts, he would have given Potter detention for the rest of the year. Pomfrey had managed to heal both eardrums but he would have to put on ointment made out of dung beetles for the next week. The combination of the ointment and Snape's hair gel made his head greasier than ever, and Snape ignored the students gagging as he walked from the dungeon to Dumbledore's office. Luckily years of brewing noxious potions had dulled his olfactory senses.

The stone gargoyle of the griffon moved aside, allowing entrance to the stairway. Given his shaky position, Dumbledore refrained from using the ridiculous candy based passwords. His fellow Heads of House were present in addition to the odious Dolores Umbridge. The toad like witch beamed at the room, smiling like Cornelius Fudge at a Malfoy Christmas party. She was either a great actress or had also lost her sense of smell.

Facing the Headmaster and the teachers were the Hogwarts Board of Governors and several pureblood parents of students at Hogwarts, barely containing their outrage despite Dumbledore's attempts to offer Lemon Drops, dosed with a liberal amount of Calming Draughts. Snape saw Augusta Longbottom, Lord and Lady Greengrass, the Patils, Xenophilius Lovegood, Nathaniel Rothstein, Lord Macmillan, and Hector Abbott. Snape realized that all of them had heirs present at the Hog's Head. He only hoped that Malfoy, the newly appointed Chair of the Board, could quell their anger, or at least direct it against Dumbledore.

Lucius Malfoy stood up slowly, his right hand shaking as he grasped the silver snake headed cane for support. Snape recognized the signs of the cruciatus of course. He had seen them often enough fifteen years ago. The Dark Lord must have blamed the Malfoy family for Potter's transformations and the failure of the Hog's Head mission. With Draco at school and Bellatrix injured, Lucius and Narcissa would take the brunt of his anger. Snape would have to make certain that Draco stayed at school, at least until the winter break.

"I would like to call this meeting to order over the Hog's Head Horror. Madame Bones, please…" Lucius was interrupted by the entrance of a tall dark haired witch in formal robes with a crest of three ravens under a mailed fist holding a wand.

"Mrs. Tonks. Is there any news from St. Mungo's?" Dumbledore asked.

"No, I am here to attend this meeting. I merely had to stop at Gringott's to finish some paperwork." Andromeda Tonks said, with a smile wider than Dolores Umbridge.

"But you have no child attending Hogwarts." the Headmaster said.

"But I have a position on the Board. Get out of my seat, Malfoy. I am Lord Black's proxy, confirmed by the goblins." Andromeda said, flourishing a contract with the official Gringott's seal. Lucius Malfoy sputtered and Dumbledore blanched. "This is by order of Sirius Black."

"You have been in touch with Sirius Black?" asked a surprised Amelia Bones.

"Yes, he gave me his proxy to act for him in all matters of House Black. He swore on his magic that he had nothing to do with the deaths of James and Lily Potter, and he made an Unbreakable Vow to do everything possible to keep his godson, Harry James Potter, safe." Andromeda said.

"But if Black wasn't the Secret Keeper, then who was?" Amelia asked.

"Peter Petitgrew. And Dumbledore can confirm that, can't you?" Andromeda said, as all eyes in the room swung to the Headmaster.

"Well, yes - I discovered that Sirius was innocent." Dumbledore said.

"And you never thought to inform the DMLE? Or tell us that Petitgrew was alive and a traitor." Bones said.

"I told Cornelius but he said that Harry and I must have been confunded." The headmaster said.

"I had no idea it was so easy to confund you, Headmaster. Or that the Chief Warlock allowed the Minister of Magic to intimidate him into silence." Andromeda turned to Amelia Bones. "Amelia, Sirius would like to push for a speedy trial but he wants assurances of no Kill On Sight order and that he won't be harmed in custody."

"You can't tell the Ministry what to do." Umbridge screeched.

"I represent the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black in an attempt to exonerate our rightful heir. The Minister will listen to me or face the consequences." Andromeda said.

"Andy is right. If Sirius was wrongfully sentenced to Azkaban for a dozen years, he deserves to be heard as soon as possible." Amelia said, with clear support from many in the room.

"Amelia, can you continue with your report." Augusta Longbottom said.

"Yes. Dawlish and Macnair refuse to talk but this is what we know. The students view Umbridge as a horrible teacher, so they decided to form a group to teach defense. Some of the more reckless named it Dumbledore's Army. Yesterday was the first meeting at the Hog's Head. Somehow, Bellatrix Lestrange found out and attacked with Dawlish and Macnair and four other Death Eaters. We believe they intended to kidnap witches to lure out the unicorn but they were also ready in case he attacked. Harry Potter's ability to turn into a nundu changed everything. As for the two faerie hunters, the DMLE has no idea." Bones said.

"Were you aware of this danger? That the students might be targeted AGAIN, one month after Halloween." Lord Greengrass thundered.

"Alas, we believed the castle was well protected. How could we have expected an attack in Hogsmeade?" Dumbledore said sadly.

"Headmaster, there was an attack in 1976 in Hogsmeade by the Death Eaters. They killed several adults in the village, who attempted to defend students." Andromeda said. "Did you know about this Army?"

"I was aware of some discontent. But Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, the leaders, never informed me of their plans." Dumbledore said, skillfully deflecting blame.

"It is all the fault of that mud - muggle born witch. She should be locked up or expelled." Umbridge said. "She is a troublemaker always bothering pure bloods."

"Perhaps if you actually taught spells in Defense Against Dark Arts, this would not be a problem." Augusta Longbottom said.

"Amelia - Do you think Hogwarts students will be attacked again?" Lady Greengrass asked.

"It is certainly possible, Esme. If they want to lure Mister Potter out, the Death Eaters may try to kidnap students again." Bones said. "I will try to post aurors here, but I can't guarantee their safety, particularly on such a large campus."

"Do not worry. You have my personal guarantee. Hogwarts is the safest place in Britain." Dumbledore said. "If there are no further questions, we must get back to our students.'

Andromeda snorted loudly. "Not so fast, Dumbledore. We are not finished. Students were nearly killed for the second time this year. Don't you think you deserve blame for this?"

"But I was not involved in these attacks." Dumbledore said.

"Just like you were not involved in the Triwizard Tournament where Cedric Diggory died?" Andromeda said rhetorically. "I believe the board should consider your replacement." Loud gasps in the room broke out from both the parents and the heads.

"I would happily volunteer to be Headmistress. The students would fare better under my discipline." Umbridge simpered in a high girlish voice.

"Your incredibly poor excuse for teaching led to this mess. Potter was potioned in your class. You sent my daughter out to the Forbidden Forest for detention. And the D.A. was organized because no one learns a damn thing reading Slinkhard. You will never be Headmistress of the School." Lord Greengrass snarled.

"Hear, hear. I agree entirely." Augusta Longbottom looked at her fellow governors. "Anyone with children in the school would resign first before appointing you." Umbridge gave Longbottom a venomous stare, wondering how she could force the crone's dismissal.

"Dumbledore, I think you should be put on probation. Hogwarts clearly is not serving the interests of their students well and the education is sub standard." Andromeda said.

"Hogwarts is the finest magical school in Britain." Dumbledore replied. "And I have been head of Hogwarts for fifty years."

"It is the only magical school in Britain." Andromeda said bluntly. "If students need to meet in Hogsmeade because they can't learn Defense Against Dark Arts in class, then something is seriously wrong. Fifteen year olds don't want to do school work on Saturdays and the OWLs are many months off. If they are worried enough to form an army, you are failing them."

"Dolores Umbridge is responsible for Defense Against Dark Arts." Dumbledore said.

"So are you. You are the Headmaster." Andromeda said. "I would much rather you restore Hogwarts to its former greatness. But for now, Minerva should be Headmistress. Surely with her many years as Deputy, she can replace you temporarily."

"I am needed to protect Hogwarts. Only my guidance can keep the students safe." Dumbledore insisted.

"Eh, they haven't been very safe the past month. And the month before that, Harry Potter was assaulted by a classmate before a teacher and nothing happened to the attacker." Andromeda said.

"If you have ideas to keep the school safe, you should share them." Cyrus Greengrass said. "I motion that you are put under probation for three months, and help McGonagall secure and reform the school."

Andromeda, Augusta and Cyrus were the first to raise their hands, but others swiftly followed. The parents of the students attacked in Hogsmeade were pleased but the teachers were stunned and concerned. Dumbledore sighed in frustration and wondered how had it all gone so wrong. During the years that Malfoy served as Chair, he had managed to neutralize the Death Eater with a coalition of light and neutral families. Those tactics would not work against Andromeda Tonks. Dumbledore knew he had to regain his position as Headmaster. The fate of Britain and the entire magical world depended upon him.

Outside, a beetle with markings about the antennae resembling horn rimmed eyeglasses flew off, eager to file a story with the Daily Prophet. Just like last year, Hogwarts was brimming with dark secrets, waiting to be exposed by an attractive, alluring and aggressive reporter. This one would definitely get her the front page.

* * *

In the Forbidden Forest, a huge cat with yellow and black spots prowled silently in the twilight. The stag nibbled at the acorns of the oak tree on the ground and never saw his death coming. The nundu leapt and with one brutal bite, snapped the stag's neck in half, blood spurting in the air like a red fountain. The beast sat down and picked at the carcass aimlessly, for it hungered not for meat but the joy of the hunt. The nundu licked with a long tongue, cleaning the blood off its dark face, and sniffing for other game.

A beautiful woman in a dark emerald dress walked into the clearing. She had dark hair, tinged with auburn, and sharp green eyes on her pale and unearthly face. The nundu bared its teeth slightly as the ears flattened. The woman held her right hand out to the great cat, and walked closer until the tips of her long elegant fingers could nearly touch the animal's chin.

Harry blinked in surprise, as he shook off the haze and urge of the hunt. He prepared to yowl - not to be loud or harmful but to warn the lady of her danger. The woman chuckled, and then wagged her index finger in a soft reprimand.

"Harry James Potter. I am not afraid of a large cat, a unicorn, or even a fifteen year old wizard." the woman said.

Harry focused more on the woman in green standing calmly. Her magic sang to him - an ancient dirge of a world faded long ago. Even the nundu, confident in his rule over the forest, could sense the immense power hidden in those dark emerald eyes. This was no ordinary witch but a queen - a faerie queen. Harry tensed, wondering if he should attack or flee, but unable to escape the queen's gaze.

"I am not the Queen of Air and Darkness. She is my enemy, just as she is yours."

Harry transformed back to a tall black haired boy, awkward and on the verge of manhood. "Who are you, my lady?" he asked.

"Morgana Le Fay." She raised her pale supple arms to him like a mother embracing a child. "I have come to teach you of your powers."


	11. Unfinished Plans

**Unfinished Plans**

The Monday morning Daily Prophet blared gigantic headlines that took the entire top half of the paper, and captivated students from all years and houses at Hogwarts.

**DUMBLEDORE DEFROCKED! HEADMASTER OR HEAD MORON? -** _BY RITA SKEETER_

The article sourced from the leading lights of the magical world in extensive hard hitting interviews spoke about the disappointment of the Board of Governors at the events of the last month. The Headmaster had been told to _"Shape UP or Ship OUT!"_ and the Prophet alluded to many dastardly plots at the school for the last few years and a sharp deterioration in the quality of education. There was a cartoonish drawing of a severe looking witch with a stuffed vulture on her hat thrashing a cowering Hogwarts professor in the buttocks with a bright red handbag.

"But Grandma never spoke with Skeeter. She only told me that they want the school improved." Neville Longbottom sputtered.

Hermione nodded, sure that the beetle animagus was up to her usual tricks. She read carefully through the article for actual facts, not salacious details or hints of long lost loves that many professors had suffered. According to Rita Skeeter, Hogwarts was a hotbed of lusty wizards, crying over forbidden liaisons, like Heathcliff in **Wuthering Heights**. Hermione snorted at the idea that a Slytherin/Gryffindor romance was the height of passion or that champions of the light were drawn like moths to naughty dark witches and wizards. Even Lavender and Parvati did not buy this bilge, as they glanced at the oafish Crabbe and Goyle with disgust.

"We are doomed." a gloomy Ron Weasley said between bites of sausage. "Who will save the school now? Who will guide us? Without Dumbledore, we are the mercy of the Ministry and He Who Must Not Be Named."

"Dumbledore isn't dead. He is not even fired. They put him on probation and asked him to improve the security and fix the school. The Board wants a better Hogwarts." Hermione said.

"Oh, you are so naive. The probation is just an excuse. In a few months, they will just fire him and replace him with Snape. Everyone is plotting against him." Ron ranted.

"Skeeter is a horrible woman happy to hurt people for headlines but she is too smart not to mix some truth in her lies. Hogwarts has had serious security breaches. A Death Eater posed as Moody for the entire year. Before that, we had dementors and the basilisk. And a lot of the classes could be better, not just Defense Against Dark Arts." Hermione said. "There is work to be done to improve the school - and all of us should pitch in, including the Headmaster."

"Hogwarts is fine. There is nothing wrong with the school that kicking out a few Slimy Snakes wouldn't fix." Ron said, glaring at Draco and his cronies.

"And that is one of the problems. The different Houses don't have to be at each other's throats. The Gryffindors look down on the other Houses and they feel the same about us. We need to work together." Hermione argued. She had appreciated the support from the other witches from different houses in the last month.

The red headed wizard grumbled and Hermione could not tell whether that grunt signalled agreement. Frankly, she didn't care. "But what about Dumbledore's Animagus Army? What about my animagus form?" Ron lamented.

"If they can make the Defense Against Dark Arts class better, we don't need a Defense Association. And if you want to be an animagus, nothing is stopping you. Shouldn't the whole school get a chance to improve at self defense, and not just a small group of friends? We don't sign up at Hogwarts to be an elite fighting force. We are students - and the teachers, aurors, and the Headmaster should protect the school. I don't want to worry about Bellatrix Lestrange popping out of a door, or a rabid werewolf on a the full moon. Fifty years ago, Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald - so why can't the Headmaster defend us without risking our lives?" Hermione said.

'I am sure Dumbledore has a brilliant plan that he can't share with us. He is Dumbledore! We just have to trust him." Ron shrugged. "He has defeated Voldemort once already."

"His brilliant planning shouldn't be that Harry always has to save the day. Every year, there has been a crisis - and every year, Harry saves us. So - no, I don't want to follow Dumbledore. I almost died twice - and the Headmaster has done very little about that. Ron, if you want to get better at Defense, you need to do that yourself." Hermione said.

Ron shut Hermione out, not wanting to hear any more nagging about studying or reading or practicing spells. Who had the time? There were more important things like chess and quidditch. He didn't even realize the witch had left with her books, after finishing her plate of toast.

* * *

Hermione sat down in a secluded corner in the library. Tracey Davis nodded to her, while Daphne perused a tome on** Secrets of the Ancients: Magic before Magic**. Susan walked in, with Luna and Hannah. When the coven had convened, Hermione took out a thin book, leather bound covers worn with age. Hedwig had flown from Hampstead to Hogwarts last night with **Last Poems**, A. E. Housman's final collection that he had sent to his unrequited and dying love.

"This is the poem." Hermione said as she read the words.

_Her strong enchantments falling,_  
_Her towers of fear in a wreck,_  
_Her limbecks dried of poison,_  
_And the knife at her back._

_The Queen of air and darkness_  
_Begins to shrill and cry,_  
_"Oh young man, oh my slayer, ,_  
_Tomorrow you shall die._

_Oh Queen of air and darkness,_  
_I think 'tis truth you say,_  
_And I shall die tomorrow;_  
_but you will die today._

Hermione waited as the witches digested the haunting poem. Daphne asked the first question. "And a muggle wrote this?"

"A. E. Housman. He published this book in 1922." Hermione said.

"Sometimes, poets have visions. Maybe he saw this in a dream and it is really a prophecy." Luna said.

"What is a limbeck?" Hannah asked.

"It is an old word for a device in alchemy. It is two vessels connected by a tube to distill gas or liquid." Hermione said.

"So this Queen brews poisons. Could she have made the potion that warped Potter's magic? And is Harry the young man? Were the hunters afraid he will kill the Queen?" Tracey asked.

"Why would the faerie queen know about a muggle poem written this century? And if this vision is true, whoever defeats the Queen will die." Daphne said. "And the hunters were not afraid of Potter. They said their Queen would crush him."

"They may underestimate him. Everyone else has. If the poem is true, then the queen has towers of fear and strong enchantments. And Harry will battle her." Hermione said.

"War is coming. I wonder how much time we have left." Luna said.

* * *

Harry groaned as he woke up in his tent. He had seen a woman in a dark green dress, pale and beautiful, who sung a lullaby, soothing the nundu. As his eyes drooped, Harry wondered why she sought him out and marveled at her emerald green eyes, flickering like an evening star. The dream was strange but comforting and Harry slept well for the first time in many nights. Then he saw her in the living room, sipping a cup of tea.

Harry would have pinched himself but the overwhelming feel of magic made him realize she was no illusion. She smirked and Harry rushed back to put on more clothes. Despite the chilly November, he was warm and slept in little.

Harry emerged again and the witch snapped her fingers, conjuring a full breakfast : eggs sunny side up, French toast, rashers of bacon, and a silver goblet brimming with pumpkin juice. He drank the refreshing pumpkin juice and took a bite of the delicious toast. The witch had broken Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration and Harry chuckled at what Hermione would say.

"Morgana Le Fay?" Harry asked.

"My name has not changed from yesterday." The witch said.

"But I thought Morgana was a dark witch and an enemy of King Arthur and Merlin." Harry said.

"And where did you learn that rubbish from?" Morgana said.

"History of Magic and Chocolate Frog Cards." Harry said.

"Well, there is a reason it is called history and not her story. I was never Arthur's enemy. We disagreed and I called him a naive twit but I helped in the beginning, before everything fell apart. Nothing lasts forever." Morgana said.

"Last night, you promised to teach me of my powers. But how do you know of them?" Harry asked warily.

"That story is much older than Camelot. A long time ago, while humans were still in caves, there was the First World, the kingdom of the faerie. The trees were taller, the mountains sharper and the water deeper. The First World was ruled by capricious princes who bickered with each other. The Queen offered them elixirs that could transform animals into powerful and deadly beasts, living weapons of war. She corrupted these creatures into engines of destruction, the Tane. The lion became a bandersnatch, a chicken a Jub Jub Bird, a snake a Linnorm." Morgana said.

"But how does that affect me?" Harry asked and then his eyes opened. "Draco's attack! That was a faerie potion." The witch nodded. "Am I becoming a monster?"

"You are awakening. The potion is feeding on your magic and making you sometime more than a mere wizard." the witch said.

"But my magic is gone. Nurse Pomfrey searched and could not find any trace. According to Dobby, I am invisible to detection charms." Harry said.

"Your magic is not gone. It is transformed. You won't be able to cast jinxes or hexes but magic is not cheap tricks and blue balls of flame. Real magic can burn the world down." Morgana said.

"But I don't want that." Harry said. "I don't want to rule the world or be a nundu animagus. I wish this had not happened to me - that I could go back to being a normal student at Hogwarts."

"I am sorry, Harry but it is not for you to decide. All you have to decide is to choose the paths that remain to you." Morgana raised her hand and a crystal orb appeared, like a prophecy ball but much larger. "Let me show you what the Queen of Air and Darkness plans."

Harry looked deep in the conjured sphere. The world inside was surreally beautiful - rolling hills, grassy fields, crystal blue lakes but sinister shadows brewed under the idyllic surface. Faerie children were hunted down and tortured. There were trees easily mistaken for beech with branches that turned into vipers dragging their prey to a maw hidden in the heartwood. Fey nobles picnicked while hunting parties captured muggles and wizards for sport. The Queen of Air and Darkness did not practice the straightforward evil of Voldemort's blood supremacy. Her callous amorality was far more chilling: she was already immortal. Having lived too long and seen too much, the Queen and her followers would do anything to relieve their boredom. She lacked the interest to complete the conquest of the good faerie lured to her world, keeping their hopes alive to prolong their agony. The rape of magical Britain was a spectacle worthy of her rule, and she would corrupt the world until it mirrored her own.

"What do I need to do?" Harry said. He would not let the Queen win, and drag his friends into a beautiful but cruel faerie Hell.

"You must embrace your power - Harry. Let go of who you once were. Forget the past and become the Beast." Morgana said. "Only then, will your magic truly return. Even the Eldest fear the Tane, and you may become greater than any before, even the mighty Jabberwock."

"The Jabberwock? Isn't that just a children's poem by Lewis Carroll?" Harry asked. He remembered a copy from the library at Little Whinging with an illustration of a funny looking creature - a beast with a long neck, a hideous face, and giant talons with three claws each. It looked more silly than terrifying although Harry supposed that it had been a children's book.

"My sweet child, the Jabberwock is no tale for young impressionable girls. In the First World, there is no beast more destructive or ruinous. The Jabberwock may slumber for years and then be awoken by one of the Eldest, to go forth and wreak havoc. His bite and claws can slay even a nundu and his eyes can burn with flames. Only a hero with a legendary sword forged by the Gods can defeat the beast with ease. You are not ready to face the Jabberwock but the Queen of Air and Darkness will release him to savage your world." Morgana said sharply.

Harry's face struggled to remain impassive. He had heard this before from Dumbledore - about the dangers out there and how he was not ready to face them. At least, Morgana LeFay promised to train him although he wondered about her motivation. What was her history and relationship with the Queen of Air and Darkness? She was a legendary witch of great power - so why did she need a fifteen year old boy. Harry had not rejected Dumbledore just to be manipulated again. For now, he accepted her guidance. Morgana LeFay had been alive hundreds of years before Hogwarts had been founded, and Harry needed her knowledge of the faerie. And he wanted more than anything for his magic to return.

* * *

"Sirius, surely you see the larger picture." Albus Dumbledore said, peering at the now acknowledged Head of House Black over his half moon spectacles.

Sirius Black looked pale, the product of being stuck in 12 Grimmauld Place for the last year. He was dressed in splendid Black Family Robes, his brown locks well groomed and his brown mustache and wispy beard trimmed and neat. The only blemish were the silver handcuffs engraved with runes that Amelia Bones had snapped on his wrists. Still, the chain was long enough that he could stretch his long arms behind him in a faux yawn, as two of Amelia's best, Shacklebolt and Moody, watched vigilantly over the reformed fugitive.

"What bigger picture? I asked you for a trial for the last two years. Andy did it the next day, and she is not the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot." Sirius said. Next to him, Remus winced at the tone of contempt so familiar to wizards who dealt with the House of Black.

"I needed to expend all my focus to protect Harry from attacks. With Cedric's death, there was a great deal of pressure to investigate Harry, and then Fudge wanted to expel the boy over the dementor attack." Dumbledore explained.

"Albus, my first request was before the Quidditch World Cup. And you hardly protected Harry. He was attacked the Daily Prophet the entire summer, and then by dementors who should have kissed the Dursleys. A month into school, he was attacked by Draco Malfoy. And why should we care if Harry being investigated? My godson has done nothing wrong. Even the twits at the Wizengamot would agree, if they got their head out of their asses." Sirius said.

"Have you picked up any signs of Harry, Headmaster?" Remus hurried to ask. He knew that Sirius referred to Dumbledore as the former Headmaster but he hardly wanted to delve into that bone of contention.

"Hagrid has tried but gotten lost every time. The paths twist back on each other, and he cannot make it even a quarter of mile into the forest without finding himself back in the direction of the castle. The centaur herd refuse any request for assistance. His boarhound Fang is no help. I have tried to analyze the magic but I have been forced to dedicate too much time to the Board of Governors, the DMLE, and the Ministry." Dumbledore said.

"You mean - politicking to save your job." Sirius drawled.

"Someone needs to look out for the deeper interests of the students, and that is protecting them from the Death Eaters." Dumbledore said. "Surely, you realize that Andromeda's attempts to reform Hogwarts can only distract from my efforts to oppose Voldemort. If you remove her from the Board, the other Governors will realize their error and forget about this probation."

"Fire Andromeda Tonks? Albus - you have dealt with witches of the House of Black. She threatened to castrate Remus if he ever hurt little Nymphadora, without the help of spells. If Remus is lucky, she will use a sharp knife and not a dull one." Sirius chuckled.

"Headmaster, that is why we have come to Hogwarts today. Sirius wants to see Andromeda in action, holding the first meeting on possible changes to the school. If the recommendations are too radical, he will speak with Andy but we both want to know what can be done." Remus said.

"Very well." Dumbledore sighed. "Shall we attend the meeting?"

* * *

Andromeda Tonks banged the gavel as the governors and teachers welcomed the stream of students into the Great Hall. She had taken the position of Chair, as was the right of House Black. Her great great grandfather had been the first member of the Board, over 200 years ago and Andromeda was certain that her House would again save the school. Sirius had promised even after the trial that Andy would take the point at Hogwarts while he would deal with the morons at the Wizengamot. Andromeda knew that shaping and protecting students was just as important as dealing with Ministry plots. In a few years, these children would lead Britain. Weaning them from influences such as Lucius Malfoy and Dolores Umbridge were critical.

Many adults were attending - governors and teachers, Ministry flunkies and press reporters, and parents from all houses, ranging from an over eager Molly Weasley to a cold Lucius Malfoy. Amelia Bones had come in her capacity as Susan's guardian and both Greengrasses were there, Cyrus sitting on the board, and Esme among the parents. Unfortunately, Narcissa had not shown up among the large group of Slytherin parents. Andy waited until the all students had finished sitting down, and Dumbledore made his way to the Teacher's Table, with a smirking Sirius and a somber Remus parting ways with the Headmaster to mingle with other parents.

"This meeting is convened by the governors to get a full picture of how to improve Hogwarts. As Chair, I believe that the most important impressions are the students. The Board would like to hear from the students on what is needed to make the school better." Andromeda began.

"HEM, HEM, HEM." a loud cry came from the very edge of the Teacher's Table.

"Yes, Madame Umbridge." Andromeda said.

"I believe students should be seen, and not heard. They are far too young to understand what is required of them, let alone opine on their betters. The Ministry has always set educational standards, and we must look to the leadership of Cornelius Fudge." Umbridge said.

"Is that the Cornelius Fudge that graduated with only Acceptables in his OWLs and barely passed any NEWTs?" asked Madam Longbottom.

"Dolores, some of us actually want to teach, not spout Ministry Propaganda. I fully agreed with the governors. If the students have complaints, we should listen - not dismiss them out of hand and retreat to an office." McGonagall stared pointedly at Severus Snape. The Potions Master did not deign to respond.

"Right - who would like to say something?" Andromeda looked at the crowd of suddenly quiet students. Finally, a witch raised her hand uneasily. "Yes, Miss?"

"Hermione Granger, Ma'am." the witch said, ignoring several unfriendly faces among parents and pure blood students. "We need to be able to practice our spells. We are not allowed any time in Defense Against Dark Arts and the educational decrees don't allow us to meet."

Andromeda looked at the bushy haired muggleborn. "Miss Granger, are you the one who organized Dumbledore's Army?

"Yes, Ma'am - but it should have been the Defense Association. Madame Umbridge doesn't teach us any spells. And we can barely practice because spells are banned outside of classrooms and students can't meet in groups larger than three." Hermione said.

"Students don't need to learn curses and hexes. That will only to squabbling." Umbridge said.

"How exactly do you plan for them to pass their OWLs and NEWTs, when they need to cast curses and hexes?" Griselda Marchbanks asked.

"They can simply use the knowledge gleaned from textbooks." Umbridge answered.

"Your favorite textbook has no spells. Slinkhard is a waste of paper." Marchbanks said.

"Madame Umbridge, we don't expect students to pass the Potions OWL without previous practice in brewing potions. Why then, should a student only cast a Counter-Jinx the day of the exam?" Andromeda said

"Jinxes and Hexes may harm students - unlike potions brewing." Umbridge said, provoking a venomous stare from the head of Slytherin.

"The art of Potions is extraordinarily dangerous, unlike silly wand waving." Snape snapped. That is why brewing must be practiced with care and precision. Students, who are not complete dunderheads, will have prepared all the potions on the tests many times already."

"Hogwarts Professors. Is it your learned opinion that students require practice of your subject outside of class?" Andromeda asked, looking directly at the four Heads of Houses. They were unanimous in their response, advocating for more study, not less. "In that case, I believe that the Educational Decree Twenty Four is rescinded in cases of learning. Further, any student wishing to do extra study on their subjects should be encouraged - in Defense Against Dark Arts or any other subject. Minerva, the Board instructs the teachers to find classrooms and time periods where students from all years can train for their Practical Work."

A red headed witch stood up, and Andromeda recognized the niece of her friend Amelia Bones. "Madame Tonks, I believe we need better security at Hogwarts. Students were attacked last week in Hogsmeade and also on Halloween." Susan had nearly become a victim twice, and no parent wanted to hear their child endangered.

Draco Malfoy raised his hand and began to speak without any regard for Andromeda or Susan. "The real danger is that monster in the Forbidden Forest. We need to hunt the nundu down - if it really is a nundu and not just the overwrought imagination of a few witches. A nundu is a violent Class 5 Beast, a known wizard killer. Why does the Headmaster allow these dangers so close to our school?" Several Slytherin students gave a half hearted cheer.

"It is just a wee misunderstood beast. It canna harm anyone." Hagrid said despite Umbridge's open sneer next to him.

"How exactly would you kill a nundu, Malfoy? Are you volunteering?" Ron Weasley said.

"I demand that the teachers protect us from this menace." a red faced Draco declared, oblivious to the glare of many witches who had a very different take on the nundu. "The Ministry will be glad to help, I am sure."

"Harry Potter would never harm a teacher. He loves Hogwarts." Hermione said angrily.

Andromeda knew that unfortunately was not true. Harry might have loved the school and still not care for the teachers. The nundu's scream had shattered shields and felled Dumbledore himself. A deaf man could not speak the incantation for a spell. "It is true that the Forest is not safe for students. Perhaps, the teachers can make certain the more dangerous creatures are deep in the woods and not at the edges."

"Madam Chairwoman, I do not believe that possible. The very nature of the forest has changed. I believe a powerful magical force has warped the place, and anyone who entered would become disoriented or completely lost. Attempting to hunt a nundu or a unicorn would not end well." Dumbledore said. Excited whispers broke out in the crowd.

"Is it possible to identify this magic? Is it a spell or a curse?" Andromeda said.

"I believe the magic to be not of our world." Dumbledore said somberly. "No wards or runes are capable of affecting such a large area. I certainly cannot dispel the effect."

Andromeda banged her gavel to stop the murmurs in the room. "Enough! We are not here to talk about the Forbidden Forest which has resided next to Hogwarts for centuries. I want ideas for how to protect the students at the school. I imagine no one here is foolhardy enough to wander the Forbidden Forest."

"I believe we should strengthen the wards. Professor Babbling, Vector and I can help Minerva in this area." Filius Flitwick squeaked.

"It may make sense to have teachers patrol at night. If Amelia would lend us some aurors, we could set a rotation to defend the school." McGonagall said.

"What about the secret passages into school?" Sirius asked. Many eyes turned to the debonair Lord Black.

"What secret passages, Sirius?" Andromeda asked.

"I know of at least seven. We used them to go to Hogsmeade during the week." Sirius chortled.

"We need to make certain all passages are closed. Is there any other way to approach the school without triggering the wards, Dumbledore?" Andromeda said.

"I cannot think of any. Hogwarts is the safest place in Britain." Dumbledore said.

Andromeda narrowed her eyes. The evidence did not support that, and Dumbledore was doing his best to offer platitudes but not offer any real help. "Sirius, you are one of the sneakiest trickiest people around." The Marauder preened under the praise, much to the annoyance of Lucius Malfoy and other well bred Slytherins. "Why don't you work with Minerva in closing these passages, so that there are no threats to the Castle. That way, the time you spent at Hogwarts breaking rules and hiding from teachers can be used positively."

The meeting continued for another thirty minutes. Neville Longbottom asked whether teachers could stop making nasty remarks about students in class. Several muggleborns spoke about not knowing pureblood customs and the inevitable misunderstandings. Others wondered why the Inquisitorial Squad was allowed to run amuck, favoring only Slytherins. Lastly, Hermione Granger proposed more advanced classes for students who wished to pursue Masteries. Surprisingly, Daphne Greengrass had supported that idea as well, and Andromeda managed to overcome complaints from Dolores Umbridge and Severus Snape that the dunderheads and blithering fools at Hogwarts were not prepared for such difficult work. McGonagall and Marchbanks decided that any student would need to pass a rigorous examination before embarking in advanced work, and maintain excellent grades in all current subjects.

* * *

After the meeting ended, Andromeda walked with McGonagall to the Headmaster's Tower. Her old Transfiguration teacher had taken on the job of interim Head of Hogwarts with gusto, even warning Umbridge and Snape that further shenanigans would not be tolerated. There were limits to McGonagall's powers, as both Umbridge and Snape had contracts that could not be broken. Minerva, with the full support of Filius Flitwick and Pomona Sprout, was doing her best though, and Andromeda hoped the results could be seen quickly.

The two witches went past the gargoyle into the circular office still littered with mementos of Dumbledore, little silver instruments that had stopped moving, and dozens of portraits of retired Headmasters and Headmistresses overseeing a cluttered room. Minerva hesitated at the enormous claw-footed desk.

"Oh go on, Minerva. For the next few months, that is your chair." Andromeda assured her.

Minerva stepped forward and sat in the Headmaster's chair, the Sorting Hat directly above her on a shelf. The chair was large and a bit too gaudy for the stern Scottish woman but she relaxed as Andromeda took a seat opposite. The door opened again, and Albus Dumbledore entered, followed by Snape. The annoyance in his eyes at seeing another in his chair vanished quickly, and Andromeda thought that perhaps she had only imagined that thought.

"I came, as you requested, Minerva." Dumbledore said.

"Why did you bring Severus?" McGonagall asked. "This was to be a private meeting."

"I trust Severus Snape completely. He has my full support." Dumbledore said.

"You can trust him as much as you like. He is not Headmaster and he does not belong in this meeting." Andromeda said, her violet eyes flashing. Snape had seen that look before in Bellatrix Lestrange, and knew that ignoring such a signal never boded well. He stood up, and excused himself to McGonagall's loud sigh and Dumbledore's mournful gaze.

"We must learn to trust each other." Dumbledore said. "We are stronger together than divided."

"I agree, Albus - so why are you not helping? You are better at wards than Filius, and more skilled at Defense than anyone. You know more about the secret passages and the tricks of the castle than I do - and I have been teaching here for 39 years." McGonagall said angrily.

"I agree with Minerva. Albus, you are the greatest wizard of our age. Why aren't you using your vast knowledge to help Hogwarts? Surely the attack on Hogsmeade shows the danger to our children." Andromeda said.

"I have my reasons." Dumbledore said. "I have been busy analyzing the changes in the Forbidden Forest."

"Havers. You are still obsessed with Harry Potter. You want to find him, and bring him back." McGonagall sighed.

"Harry will play an important role in the coming battles." Dumbledore said. "We must make certain he is safe."

"Mr. Potter is one of my two favorite cubs - and I have no doubt he will grow up to be a fine man. But he is not even a student any more. You were about to expel him from Hogwarts. We canna ignore an entire school to search for him." McGonagall snapped.

"Alas, I made an error. I should have never thought of expulsion." Dumbledore said. "It was a grievous mistake, and now he has been gone astray."

"Albus, Harry Potter had no magic - well at least, none that you could identify or teach - so the boy couldn't attend Hogwarts. Why is he so much more important than the two hundred fifty students still here?" Andromeda asked.

"I cannot share such sensitive information. Suffice it to say, you must trust me on this." Dumbledore said.

"No. That won't do. I am the Chair of the Hogwarts board and unlike Lucius Malfoy, I care about the students. Minerva has served you as Deputy for more than a dozen years. She deserves to know your reasons more than me. Is Harry Potter necessary to the safety of the students? If he is, your staff certainly need to be informed." Andromeda said.

"I am sorry. I cannot divulge these secrets. You might be attacked by Death Eaters or lose the information to Legilimency." Dumbledore said.

"Albus, need I remind you both Andy and I are Occlumens of the highest order." McGonagall said sharply.

Andromeda sat back to quell her frustration. Minerva had told her that Dumbledore was tight lipped, particularly when he hatched some convoluted and seemingly nonsensical plot. Many of those plans had worked in the past, although who could say whether it was skill or sheer luck. She decided to approach this problem from a different direction, with tact and not brute force. "If you will not tell us, then help solve this mystery. The faerie hunters mentioned a Queen of Air and Darkness. Their magic was remarkable. St. Mungo's cannot heal a severed limb like that. Can you find out who and what they are?"

"I am not sure Hogwarts has the correct resources. The fey disappeared a thousand years ago. There are no books in the Hogwarts Library about them." Dumbledore said.

"But… you are a great researcher. You have written many papers in _Transfiguration Today_, _The Practical Potioneer_, and_ Runes for the Modern Wizard_. You found twelve uses for dragon blood when even the keepers only knew five. If these faeries are right, and something terrible is coming, we must know everything we can." Andromeda said.

"The faerie were there to capture Harry, not students. The true confrontation will depend on Harry, and my energy must be spent there." Dumbledore said.

Andromeda bit her bottom lip, while McGonagall had both hands on her face. "Albus, you preach that we should stand together. And yet, you don't trust us with anything. Harry Potter clearly is important but none of us know why - well you claim to. But you did not foresee that he could transform into magical creatures, and you know nothing about these faerie hunters or their Queen. Meanwhile, we have a school of children worried about their safety and dangers to come. They deserve our best efforts to protect them." Andromeda said.

"I understand your frustration - and I know that you are trying your best. But your reforms will not matter. None of it. A storm is brewing, and without Harry, these efforts will be useless." Dumbledore said.

"A storm? Are you listening to prophecies again, Albus?" McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore ignored the question and cast a wandless spell, conjuring a flickering candle. "We have only a small chance of victory. My hopes are a candle in the wind, and only I can keep it alight with an effort. But too much exposure and Voldemort will blow the dream out, and we will fall to the dark."

"That sounds grand but does Harry want to be this candle - and does the lad know that he is danger of being blown out." McGonagall said sarcastically.

Andromeda waved her hand and dispelled the image. "Potter is not a boy you can lead around by the nose. He rejected that at the Hog's Head. He may have been your candle once, Dumbledore. But now, he could be something quite different. He may be more fire than light, and stronger than you ever imagined."


	12. The Limits of Learning

**The Limits of Learning**

The snowy white owl flew into the Great Hall, depositing a thick envelope at breakfast. Hermione gulped - she had finally written to her mum last night on the Hogsmeade attack and dreaded the response. Hedwig looked at her mistress with big yellow eyes and hooted reassuring, before stealing several slices of bacon from a nearby and quite overstuffed plate. Hermione ignored the cries of outrage from Ron Weasley to open the letter.

Emma Granger did not scold and yell. She didn't rant about Hogwarts or raise questions on the Defense Association, and why such a group would be needed. Instead, she only worried about Hermione's safety. Emma pointed out that every year, the most important person in her world was in danger of getting hurt or dying, and no mother wanted to bury their child. Was a magical education truly worth that?

For a moment, Hermione thought her level headed mother was overwrought. She hadn't been in danger last year at the Tournament unless the Second Task failed. Being at the bottom of a freezing lake in February was hardly safe. Mum was right though - the troll, the basilisk, and the dementors could have easily snuffed out her life. And this year was not half over and there had already been two attempts to maim or kidnap her.

"Oi, you crazy owl - get away. Why isn't Hedwig eating your food?" Ron yelled at Hermione.

Hermione looked down at her plate of one slice of toast and berries. "Hedwig likes to eat meat, and besides, you have too much on your plate."

Ron harrumphed. "I need calories. I am a growing boy."

"You will be growing sideways soon." George chortled.

"Ron, if you need to diet, you can have one of our Canary Creams." Fred said. Hermione had confiscated that particular candy after the terrible twins had given out free samples to the first year as a ill thought out prank.

"I have to go." Hermione said. She finished her small breakfast and slung her bag over a shoulder.

"Going to that fancy social club of yours?" Ron asked.

"It is not a club. We are trying to do research into what happened." Hermione said.

Ron grunted but he was too preoccupied with eating to give anything more than a monosyllabic response.

* * *

Hermione stepped into the classroom to join her fellow Bloody Halloween witches. After Hogsmeade, Rita Skeeter had named the group the** Seven Sisters**, witches dedicated to redeeming Harry Potter from his monstrous ways. Somehow that idiotic name had caught on at Hogwarts. For one, the group had at least eight members, and sometimes more. Padma Patil and curious witches from older and younger years like Astoria Greengrass and Cho Chang volunteered to help. For another, they were hardy very sister like. The group bickered about the right approach from Luna Lovegood's weave a fairy net with dirigible plums to Daphne Greengrass's hire mercenaries to escort them in the Forbidden Forest. Hermione had not even been aware of sellsword wizards.

"Let's call the meeting to order." Susan said to the dozen witches present.

Daphne held up snippets of the golden net. "My family consulted the best experts in Europe. The magic in this net is far beyond anything they have ever seen."

"Can they tell when it was made?" One of the Patils asked.

"The detection charms are contradictory. It registers as incredibly ancient but the soul magic involved was cast recently." Daphne added.

"Auntie says the aurors have been unable to trace the hunters. They have no idea who or where they might be." Susan said.

"I believe I know." Luna said, taking out a large very old book, **Legends of the Faeries**. She opened it to the center and the witches gasped at the picture of a tall thin albino elf with deep black eyes. The faerie had silver white hair was tied in a topknot and carried a long bow in his right hand. The picture perfectly matched the fey archer at the Hog's Head.

"Who is that?" Hermione asked. "What does the book say about them?"

"That is a Leshay - an immortal elf prince that lives in an echo of our world. They have incredible magical power and are rumored to be one of the progenitor races." Luna said.

Progenitor race? Hermione had never heard of such a thing. Judging from the skeptical glares at Luna, most of the witches were in her camp.

"Luna, you can't possibly believe that… There is no evidence." Tracey said. Hermione nodded in silent agreement. If there was some sort of master magical race, surely it would be in Hogwarts, A History.

"I believe that there was a First world before this one - where magic was as common as water. Then there was a war, a very terrible one, where the world itself nearly ended, and the progenitor races were on the brink of extinction." Luna said.

"If such a war happened, then how do we not know about it?" Daphne asked skeptically.

"The First World was banished and magic rewrote the Earth to our present world like a canvas, repainted. Those stories are now only legends, and considered only fairy tales by rational wizards. But they are true. We have seen the Leshay." Luna said.

"Wait, Luna - you said the Leshay are extremely powerful?" Hermione asked.

"Yes, they are princes of the fey." Luna said.

"So if they serve this Queen of Air and Darkness…." Daphne said.

"She must be even more powerful. Harry has to be warned. He has to know who he faces." Hermione said.

"And how do you expect that to happen? Teams of aurors and teachers have tried to penetrate the Forbidden Forest many times. They all come back, dazed and confused. There is enormous pressure to locate this nundu - every day, there is a Rita Skeeter article in the Daily Prophet lambasting the incompetence of the Ministry and Hogwarts. If Dumbledore, with all his magical knowledge and power, can't even walk in the Forest, how will we?" Lavender said.

The witches in the room, even the stronger ones with little respect for the ex Headmaster, nodded their heads. Hermione though would not give up. She knew what the other students did not. Despite the accolades that he received for saving the school, Dumbledore had done little that was meaningful or helpful during the last five years at Hogwarts. Harry had always saved the day. Being a hero had never relied on power, or knowledge, or fancy skills. If they kept fighting, then there was always a chance. "I am sure we are missing something. It may not be in the Hogwarts Library or the Ministry Archives, but there must be some clue that will help is against the queen." Hermione said.

* * *

The Death Eaters stared down at their feet as Ministry stooges stammered and scraped before the Dark Lord. Voldemort sat on his throne, the veins on his hideous white skull and deformed face throbbing. "How could you have allowed Sirius Black to be found innocent?" the furious wizard ranted. "Cornelius Fudge - you control the Ministry. And Lucius Malfoy, you claim that you had enough votes on the Wizengamot!"

The slick blond aristocrat was the first to answer. "My Lord, the blood traitor gave the proxy for House Black to Andromeda Tonks. I was not even allowed to enter the chambers." Lucius said.

The short man in the green bowler hat took longer to recover. "Lord Thingie, I don't have the votes to stop the trial. Even a Minister needs to listen to respected wizards and witches. I am getting pressured by the Greengrass family, Madame Bones, Andromeda Tonks to make reforms in the Ministry. I can't just ignore them." Fudge said.

"You work for me, Fudge. Not respected witches and wizards." Voldemort snarled, and the Minister's face turned pale and clammy.

"My Lord." Lucius Malfoy said in an oily tone. "Andromeda Tonks pushed for the trial. If she was removed and the Black proxy back in my hands, I could prevent any future foolish acts."

"Black is already free. But yes, this Tonks witch will pay for her defiance. Why isn't she dead already, Lucius? Can't the Death Eaters kill one witch?" Voldemort said.

"It is not that simple, my Lord." Rodolphus Lestrange said, shrinking slightly at the angry gaze. "We have less than thirty dedicated fighters. Many Death Eaters from the First War are too old, or too frightened. Bones and her crew have been active, and we fear that she has uncovered our sleeper agents. We are outnumbered, and our recruits are frightened of this nundu."

"It is true. My son says that the pureblood students are terrified of the nundu. There is some strange magic on the Forbidden Forest that not even Dumbledore understands." Malfoy said.

Voldemort wanted to obliterate the insolence from these fools. How dare they use such pitiful excuses and not execute his orders. The neutral purebloods who had rushed to his side in the past two months had wavered and now even the darkest families found convenient excuses for their inactivity. Wizards were truly spineless creatures, who blew with the wind.

"I want their heads - Amelia Bones, Andromeda Tonks, Sirius Black. I want them all dead. This Harry Potter farce will end. Kill the beast. Unicorn, nundu - or whatever other form Potter has. Take over Hogwarts. I am the greatest Dark Lord that ever lived and magical Britain shall kneel at my feet." Voldemort spat out.

The Death Eaters exchanged uncomfortable looks in the silence that followed. "Will you be leading us my Lord? Against the nundu?" The hapless wizard who spoke those words screamed when the red ray of the Dark Lord's **Crucio** hit. The masked Death Eater blubbered and pissed himself until an **Avada Kedrada** granted mercy.

"Any other questions?" Voldemort asked. No one was foolish enough to anwer.

* * *

The old man wore the blue and yellow Hufflepuff scarf proudly as he walked with a slight limp into the Ministry of Magic. He was tall and thin, and his tousled brown hair had long faded into gray, streaked with silver. He only pretended to carry the battered brown leather suitcase with gold buckles in his right hand. His wife, a better spellcrafter than he, had long ago magicked the case to walk on tiny metal legs for his expeditions into magical preserves around the world.

The Ministry of Magic was not the favorite place for the elderly but still avid magizoologist. The beasts here were more dangerous than Class 5 creatures, and Newt Scamander had been hauled in many times by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Luckily, his allies, ranging from his brother Theseus to young whippersnappers like Mathilda Grimblehawk, protected him from the ridiculous charges of close minded bureaucrats. It was to repay those favors that he had answered today's summons.

"Newton Scamander?" The formidable red headed witch with a monocle asked. He nodded and received a firm handshake. "I am Amelia Bones. Thank you for coming."

"Happy to help a fellow Hufflepuff." Newt said. He walked into the room with a long table filled with dour wizards glaring at the other side. The eyes turned to him, and Newt recognized quite a few unfriendly faces in the crowd - Lucius Malfoy, Tobias Travers, and Thorfinn Rowle. In the wake of Walden Macnair's arrest, the brutish and heavily muscled Rowle had been named the official Executioner for the Ministry.

"This is Newton Scamander. Everyone knows that he is a world famous magizoologist. I invited him here to speak to us on nundus." Amelia Bones said.

"Hem, Hem." A toad like woman all in pink croaked. "Is it true that you possess an illegal nundu, a horrible beast and known wizard killer?" She smirked after delivering the accusation.

"No, it is not. I found Nala as a cub and took care of her until she was an adult. Fifty years ago, I brought her to a game reserve in the Kalahari Desert. I believe she has her own happy little ambush of nundus." Newt said.

"Ambushing nundus? Are they going to attack us?" Moody exclaimed.

"A group of nundus is called an ambush just like a pack of lions is a tribe. And no, nundus are not aggressive creatures. They are fairly solitary, so there are very few ambushes ever found. They do like being scratched behind the ears." Newt said.

"Not aggressive? That nundu nearly destroyed Hogsmeade. It would have killed everyone in the pub had it not been driven away." Travers said.

"We need to protect children from the killer beast." Umbridge said. "I would be happy to lead a Task Force on anti nundu tactics."

"Mr. Scamander. What is the best way to capture a nundu?" Lucius Malfoy said. Newt had crossed the blond wizard before when he testified about the inhumane treatment of hippogriffs at the Malfoy Ranch.

"I didn't capture a nundu. I rescued a cub whose mother had been murdered by wizards. I fed the cub with graphorn milk, and make it was warm and comfortable. Nala stayed with me by her own choice." Newt said.

"How can we kill the beast? What curses are best to use against a nundu?" Rowle said, unfurling a drawing made by DMLE sketch artists. "Should we try to hex it in the throat or would it be better to backstab it from behind?"

"Nundus are endangered creatures. They are rare, even in magical wildlife parks. Why would you try to kill one?" a puzzled Newt asked.

"Bah, they are vermin that need to be exterminated. The students at Hogwarts are at risk, and the Headmaster and teachers do nothing about it." Umbridge said.

"Actually Dumbledore and Hagrid have tried to find the nundu, but it resides deep in the Forest." Shacklebolt said.

"Nundus are only dangerous if they feel threatened. And yes, an adult nundu will defend itself vigorously but they usually leave humans alone. They hunt larger game like erumpents, antelopes, buffalos and graphorns." Newt said.

"The nundu is only a few miles away from students." Umbridge said.

"But I gather that it hasn't left the forest the past week." Newt said. "Wouldn't it far more dangerous to your students if you tried to disturb it?"

"So you expect us to do nothing. Or leave out milk and cookies for the nundu?" Malfoy sneered.

"As you certainly know, adult nundus are carnivores. I am not sure why the Ministry or Hogwarts have to do anything. The nundu hasn't harmed anyone. It clearly can feed itself in the Forbidden Forest. Why exactly do you need to bother it?" Newt asked.

"I will solve this problem with Walden Macnair's axe." Rowle boasted.

Newt looked at the burly blond thug with distaste. "Nundus have an excellent sense of smell. And they can be completely silent when they stalk prey. The nundu in the Forbidden Forest is no helpless beast. If you are foolish enough to attack, you will find that out soon enough."

* * *

The nundu in question lolled on its back, drowsily digesting the heavy meal of stag. A lazy flick of the tongue licked off the blood off the face, and then the beast transformed back to Harry Potter. The boy groaned and stretched his arms. The past week had been exhausting, as Morgana Le Fay pushed him hard. Harry's body was bruised and battered, the result of many hours of exertion. The witch had insisted he test his physical limits. Harry had never sprinted faster, jumped higher, or run longer, even in his first form. Unicorns were renowned for their speed, but Harry was certain that a nundu at peak acceleration could drag a unicorn down. And he was no average nundu.

It was the magic that was more frustrating. Morgana was certain that Harry retained the spark of magic. She gave him candles to light, stones to push and feathers to levitate — without a wand. It was bloody difficult. He could feel the force inside him but it was trapped energy, like a wave forced through a narrow bank. The obsidian candle would light, then sputter, and fade. Harry could not maintain the Lumos spell.

"Why is this so difficult?" he asked.

"You are still resisting, Harry. You have not accepted your change." Morgana said. "You are not a wizard, any more - not truly. You don't need to wave wands or brew potions or speak funny words. Magic is part of you but you need to welcome the power. Become the beast."

Harry sighed. Morgana LeFay did not believe in light or dark - there was only magic. For a magical creature, spells were innate - almost extensions of their very being. A nundu did not have to think to unleash a toxic cloud of gas. It was inherent and basic to its nature, and Morgana chided Harry on resisting these impulses. Nundus reveled in death and destruction, and the sooner Harry accepted his primal nature, the quicker the magic would come.

Harry did not want to become a monster. A nundu was not a unicorn. When he became the nundu, the blood lust was strong. Morgana pushed him to embrace the darkness and the violence. He feared what he was becoming but Harry knew that he had little choice. He needed to be stronger to defend his friends. Already Hermione had been attacked twice. He was certain that neither Voldemort nor this Queen would stop.

"Again, Harry." Morgana said. The boy focused, and light erupted from the obsidian candle.

* * *

Dolores Umbridge stared at her Fifth Year class with great distaste. Given the extensive complaints, the Board of Hogwarts had assigned a co teacher to both Potions and Defense Against Dark Arts. Emmeline Vance shadowed her classes, offering to actually teach spell work and defensive tactics to eager students. Umbridge still assigned reading from Wilbert Slinkhardk but the brats were more interested in actually preparing for OWLs.

Dolores could not understand how Hogwarts had sunk so low. Students dared to ask her questions instead of listening to their betters. Children should be seen but not heard. She could not understand why the other adults involved with Hogwarts did not understand that basic fact. Andromeda Tonks revoked every single Educational Decree. Sirius Black paid for extra tutoring. The aurors that Amelia Bones sent to Hogwarts were happy to give hints and tips to students from all houses. It was a complete disgrace and would lead to anarchy and turmoil.

Dolores glared at Emmeline Vance. Her "assistant" was demonstrating the proper wand motions for a **Protego Duo** charm to Lavender Brown. Several other wizards and witches watched intently, admiring the helpful senior auror. Dolores would make sure that Voldemort and his followers targeted Vance to be killed. She would be forgotten, like the non entity she was. Dolores Umbridge was the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic. Vance was unimportant. No one would give a crap about her death.

'Madam Umbridge?" A voice broke into her happy thoughts of Vance's future death, preferably as painful as possible. It was that horrible muggleborn witch. "Can we learn the patronus charm?" Hermione Granger asked.

"What? The patronus charm is very advanced magic. It is beyond NEWT level and far too difficult for your limited skills." Umbridge said.

"But aurors and teachers use the charm often. Many of the teachers have a corporeal patronus." Hermione said, having seen McGonagall, Dumbledore, Snape and Flitwick all cast the charm in the past few months.

"Not true. That half giant savage can't. And neither can Argus Filch." Umbridge said.

"Hagrid doesn't even have a proper wand. And Argus Filch can't cast spells." Hermione said.

"Nevertheless, I am sure muggleborns don't have the ability to do so. And certainly no witch or wizard, not deeply rooted in pureblood society, could possibly have the power to cast a spell until he or she was much older." Umbridge said.

"Harry Potter can. He grew up with muggles. He cast a patronus when he was thirteen." Hermione said.

"Lies, Miss Granger. You must be confunded or memory charmed. Who else claims to have seen Potter cast a patronus?" Umbridge said. Unfortunately, the entire class remembered the quidditch game between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw in Year 3. Every single student raised their hand and Umbridge gawked. "Class dismissed." Umbridge yelled. She had no desire to continue this line of conversation.

* * *

Umbridge stewed in her office, angry at all the recent changes. She had believed the Defense Against Dark Arts position to be a great career opportunity. She would gain favor with Cornelius, lord over the students, and if Dumbledore tripped, replace the Headmaster and secure the school as a personal fiefdom. Even the appearance of Voldemort had not changed her hopes. It was merely a different master than the Ministry.

Dolores grabbed one of chintz Frolicksome Feline plates on the wall. The sleepy technicolour cat wearing a large pink bow stopped mewling and hissed in alarm, as Umbridge raised the plate high above her head. The cat rushed out of the setting to join its brethren, cowering in the lowest placed of the ornamental collection on the wall, hidden by lacy pink drapes. The kittens were not bold creatures and they had seen other episodes of their mistress's ferocious rage, when no other teacher was watching.

"Plates with kittens. Whatever will mortals think of next." A cold imperious voice rang out. Umbridge spun about to see a beautiful but cold woman garbed in pale blue and black.

"How did you get in here? The door was locked." Even as the words left her mouth, Umbridge realized the error. The intruder had an unearthly and terrible beauty - pale angular features, blood black eyes, a mane of glossy black hair. The Queen's face was cold and utterly emotionless and Umbridge trembled under her alien gaze.

"Your magic cannot protect you." The Queen said dismissively. "What do you wish for, Dolores Umbridge? What do you truly desire?"

Umbridge froze before the words began to pour out. "When I was at Hogwarts, the teachers and other students looked down at me. Even though I was a Slytherin, I was never a part of the Slug Club or given a Prefectship. Dumbledore gave his prizes to mudbloods, blood traitors, werewolves. I will show them how wrong they were - all of them. They will pay for their lack of respect. I want to replace Dumbledore, and run the school will run my way, and the students will learn their proper place at my feet." Umbridge's eyes gleamed with greed.

"Very well. I will make you Headmistress of Hogwarts." The Queen said. "In return, you must do something for me."

"And what is that?" Umbridge asked, trying and failing to contain her glee.

"Oh nothing much. Simply open a door. You will have to do little else." The Queen smiled. "And then you will see your enemies suffer."

* * *

Emma Granger waited at Platform 9 for the Hogwarts Express to roll in. Winter break had just started and she was excited to see little Hermione again for two weeks before her daughter had to return to school. Only Hermione wasn't so little anymore. She was 16 years old, almost a woman grown. Emma wondered at how the time had flown by. It seemed only yesterday that she had visited Platform 9 ¾ for the first time to say good-bye to a buck toothed bushy haired eleven year old, eager to learn magic. She knew Hermione's teeth would fix themselves and the unruly hair would straighten out, and that her daughter would transform to a lovely young lady.

Emma was more concerned about the dangers at Hogwarts. Had Emma been informed promptly of the troll on Halloween of 1991, Hermione might never have returned to school after the winter break. Her daughter only told her that summer, when it was too late to consider other options. The pattern continued for the next three years - death defying hijinks, lack of information from the teachers and headmaster, and finally her daughter making a promise not to repeat said perils. That was true - each year posed a different threat.

Hermione had changed though. This year, she shared far more in letters sent home and although Emma was frightened at events at Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, she admired her daughter's new found maturity. Hermione told her about Harry Potter's disappearance, and the attempts to find the lad. Harry was somehow at the center of all of these bizarre adventures, and while the boy was an obvious trouble magnet, he also saved her daughter many times. Emma was thankful that Hermione had such a loyal friend, and concerned that he was now missing.

"Mrs. Granger?" A severe red head in a monocle asked.

"Yes, I am Emma Granger."

"Amelia Bones. My niece is friends with Hermione, and was also attacked by Death Eaters in that awful incident at Hogsmeade last month." The two women shook hands.

Emma was glad that Hermione had told her the truth. She did not want to have a panic attack at King's Cross Station. "Have they made any arrests? Do you know if the girls are in any more danger?"

"Mrs. Granger, I am the head of the Department for Magical Law Enforcement. We have made two arrests but the most dangerous Death Eaters are still out there. The Dark Lord has returned despite what the Ministry and the Daily Prophet may claim. In fact, I asked some of my trusted aurors to watch out for your family." Amelia said.

"Wait, the strange man with the electric blue eye and the punk girl with the pink hair - I have seen them hanging around my office the past two weeks." Emma said.

"Yes, Alastor Moody and Dora Tonks. I will be honest with you, Mrs. Granger. The Dark Lord has many followers, even among the aurors and the DMLE. I trust Moody and Tonks on the most sensitive missions." Madame Bones gave her a small silver mirror. "This is a two way mirror. If you are ever in trouble, contact me immediately."

"Thank you, Amelia. Please call me Emma. If I can ever help you, let me know." Emma said, slipping the mirror in her bag, as the red steam locomotive pulled in the station to anticipation of the many parents already present.

Emma slipped through the portal with Madame Bones, and Hermione came out of the train with a gaggle of Fifth Year Hogwart students, including a red head who bore a strong resemblance to her formidable aunt. Emma hugged her daughter tightly, glad that she had returned safely.

"Mum, these are my friends. Susan, Hannah, Daphne, Tracey, Luna, Parvati…."

Emma was pleased that Hermione had made so many new friends - all very different, from the haughty pureblood princess to the dreamy Ravenclaw explorer. There was much chattering about visits and presents and Christmas hols. Witches and wizards worshipped and were buried in church graveyards as much as muggles. A snowy owl dipped down, nesting on Hermione's shoulder. The owl looked around alertly with mournful amber eyes, peering at an one eyed man diving behind the railway column and an awkward witch with purple hair.

Emma glanced about the platform. Many adults made no movement toward the students, instead trying to blend into the background - quite poorly on closer examination. Over two dozen witches and wizards milled around and she questioned how many aurors served Amelia Bones and how many spies reported to Voldemort. She noticed two burly men walking in front of a sneering blond wizard with a silver snake cane, pushing aside the crowd. Emma wondered if this was what the Troubles were like - a constant threat of incipient violence, lurking behind bland routine. And the greatest casualties were not soldiers or paramilitary thugs but civilians caught in the crossfire.

"Mum, were you listening?" Hermione asked. Emma shook her head. "Susan wanted to know if we could all meet up over the holidays."

"Of course. We would like you to ourselves for a few days, but perhaps the week after?" Emma said to her beaming daughter. "Amelia, we would be happy to come over to your home or for you to visit us in Hampstead Garden."

"That would be great. I will contact you soon." Amelia said, as she left with her niece in tow. Two other witches discretely shadowed the DMLE head as the Bones family left for Diagon Alley.

Emma packed the trunk into the back of Mini Cooper. A drowsy owl rested on the trunk and Hermione sat in the front seat next to her mum, keeping up a steady chatter of classes, spells, and school changes.

"What do you have planned for the next two weeks, sweetheart?" Emma asked.

"I have a lot of books I want to read and spells to study." Hermione said, thinking about her frustrating efforts to learn more about the fey and hoping that the home libraries at the Ossuary and Greengrass Manor would yield more clues. Luna had claimed that all would be revealed in time, but while she liked the slightly dotty witch, Hermione pursued a more active agenda.

"Dear, it is a vacation. You should definitely take a break." Emma said.

"But mum, there is so much to do. I haven't been able to contact Harry. I have OWLs in five months. There is so much research and so little time." Hermione said.

"Well, I have a surprise. The strangest thing happened - I entered one of those contests - the ones where you fill out a notice stuck in your dish washing soap - and I won!" Emma said.

"Mum, those prizes are always terrible. Like a two night hotel stay where nobody wants to go - And then they lock you in a room for hours and convince you to buy a time share or fancy kitchen equipment." Hermione quipped.

"That's what your father thought. But then, a woman dressed up like a faerie princess showed up to give me a prize. She was so glamorous I thought for sure we would be on the tele."

"That's odd." Hermione's eyes narrowed. "What did you win?"

"Tickets to a play for the whole family. **The Once and Future King**." Emma smiled.


	13. The Once and Future King

**The Once and Future King**

Hermione marveled at their seats in the Old Vic theatre, named so by clever promoters after a single visit by Queen Victoria and her mum, Duchess Victoria. Her parent had taken her here to a few Shakespeare plays over the years but she had never expected to sit in the front row, so close that she could see the actors sweat under the stage lights. This was the last showing of _The Once and the Future King_ on Christmas Eve, and the Grangers eagerly awaited the retelling of King Arthur's rise and fall.

In the few minutes before the light dimmed, Hermione blitzed through the play guide. _The Once and Future King_ was the first true adaption of the complete works by T.H. White. Other versions which included an animated Disney movie focused only on the first of the four books,_ The Sword in the Stone_. She was familiar with that story - of young Arthur being taught by Merlin and meeting Robin Wood, mistaken as Robin Hood. The director, an ambitious Hollywood refugee, had cast an action hero star as Merlin and a teen heartthrob from a vampire movie as Arthur. The reviews of the British newspapers had been less than kind.

The curtain rose, and Hermione leaned forward to take in the show. Arthur had grown up with a foster family, not knowing his destiny and nicknamed the Wart. Kay, his older foster brother, bullied the young boy, and left him in the woods on a wild hawk chase where Arthur meets Merlin. The wizard was odd - easily befuddled and living backwards in time. Merlin had great powers of foresight but forgot to tell important details to Arthur, claiming those omissions imparted wisdom. Right before Arthur took the sword from the stone, Merlin left and the young boy cried. But after the coronation, Merlin returned as an advisor, promising to guide the king to a glorious doom - the finale for Book One.

Hermione mused about the similarities between Arthur and Harry. They were both orphans, brave but unexceptional, neglected by a foster family. Harry should have grown up as a magical prince, but Dumbledore had decided to take that away to teach him lessons about the world. Was that how all the heroes grew up? Harry, Arthur, Taran Assistant Pig Keeper, Frodo Baggins, Anne of the Green Gables, Lyra Belacqua - forced to come from nothing to fulfil their destiny. And was Harry more like Arthur or Lancelot, bold and reckless to the point of foolishness? Harry was brave and had near miraculous adventures - like riding a hippogriff and defeating a basilisk. Hermione was still trying to decide when the curtains rose again on four young boys telling stories at night and then their mother walked onto the stage.

* * *

The second book of_ The Once and Future King_ was _The Queen of Air and Darkness_, and Hermione gasped when she saw Queen Morgause, a great beauty with black hair and dark eyes, a seductive laugh and effervescent smile who could care less about her four children - Gawain, Agravaine, Gaheris and Gareth. The Orkney children grew up without love - their father King Lot off battling King Arthur, their mother experimenting with magic and seducing knights. The four boys tried to catch a unicorn to impress the queen, but in a fit of rage, Agravaine killed the unicorn, thinking the beast was touching his mother with the horn. Hermione was shocked - a child killing an unicorn was a horrible sin - and then that child lusted for his mum.

The four would become knights of the Round Table, but simmering under the banners of chivalry and heroism, something dark and hideous - hidden from casual observers - threatened Arthur's reign far more than battles with enemy kings. Orkney was a cursed island, and even after they left, violence and ill fortune would haunt the rest of their lives. But Hermione could not truly blame the boys. The four brothers were wild and unmannered and yes, a bit cruel, but only children starved for their mother's attention. The Queen of Air and Darkness had corrupted their spirits and nurtured the wrath and anger that would poison Camelot.

Then she traveled to England with her four children to beg King Arthur for a pardon. The Queen brought a spancel, an enchanted collar made of human flesh that would bewitch men into love. She seduced her half brother, a fact that Merlin, in his infinite wisdom,was too sleepy and muddled to tell Arthur. Nine months later, Mordred was born - a product of incest who grew to be a vain, colorless, scheming villain taught by his mother to hate his father. Mordred would tear down Arthur's dream and break the Round Table.

As the curtains fell on the second Act, Hermione jumped out of her seat.

"Whatever is the matter?" Emma asked.

"Mum, I have to go. I just realized something important." Hermione said.

"In the middle of a play?" Daniel Granger said. His brilliant daughter nodded.

"Hermione, it is Christmas Eve. Even if you saw something that surprised you, it can wait. And if you learnt something from the first half, why not see the rest of the play. Maybe there is another lesson there." Emma said.

"Plus, the bloke from the Marvel movies playing Merlin might hit someone." Daniel added.

"Dear, Merlin is gone after Act Two. You should know from reading the books." Emma said.

Hermione sat down again, the rest of the play passing in a blur. Lancelot lamented his many mistakes and abandoned the mother of his child. He then failed in the Quest for the Holy Grail while his guiltless but very dull son succeeded. The tragedy came to a head in the final act, and Mordred and Agravaine exposed the openly known secret - that the King's best friend slept with the Queen. In the ensuing war, the kingdom was shattered, betrayed by Lancelot and Guinevere's infidelity, and Arthur's incest, the original sin that had finally come home to roost. The Queen of Air and Darkness had won, and only the the dream of a better world remained, where Might was not Right, and justice prevailed : a candle in the wind for future generations.

Hermione was silent as her parents drove away from the Old Vic, discussing the play.

"There should have been more fight scenes. You have knights and swords - and action heroes. Why did they stop before the big fight between Arthur and Mordred?" Dan Granger groused.

"The book ends on the eve of battle. Arthur knows he might die or go to Avalon, but it is more important that Mallory keeps the idea of Camelot alive." Emma replied as they drove home.

"No wonder they could never make this into a decent movie." Dan said.

* * *

Hermione waited until her parents had gone to bed before activating the Protean charm. The fake galleon gleamed as the signal went out to Dobby and the Seven Sisters, or more accurately, the six other witches involved in the Bloody Halloween. Luna Lovegood popped in first, a stuffed Crumple Horned Snorkack doll clutched to her nightgown. Susan Bones came next, her wand gripped tightly, prepared to attack or defend. Dobby then brought Lavender and Parvati Patil, both witches drowsy and ready for bed. Lastly, the Slytherins came, dressed to the nines as if they just left a cocktail party.

"Do youse need anything else from Dobby, Missy Granger?" The house elf asked, after laying out a few snacks and drinks for the witches. He popped away after Hermione declined.

"What is so important that you summoned us on Christmas Eve?" Daphne asked.

"Christmas Day actually. It is after midnight." Tracey said.

"I have found something very important." Hermione said. She then related the events of the night and the details of the Second Act to the keenly interested witches.

A perplexed Daphne placed her hands on her cheeks, deep in thought. "But could that really be the Faerie Queen? Morgause was killed by her son."

"Maybe the Queen allowed that body to die. But don't you see? This Queen of Air and Darkness isn't like Voldemort. Ruling doesn't interest her. She wants to corrupt and twist everything that is good and innocent. " Hermione said.

"So she raises four boys to become violent killers. She seduces her half brother and she brings up Mordred to hate his father. Wow - she is quite the bitch." Luna said.

"Eh, men have been blaming women for centuries. Was it her fault that Lancelot slept with his best friend's wife? Why not blame the men as well - it takes more than just the woman to sleep around." Tracey said.

"Other people were guilty too. Arthur wasn't forced to sleep with Morgause - although the spancel had magical powers. But her scheme were instrumental to destroying Arthur and the ruin of Camelot. She succeeded and now she is rising again." Hermione said.

"But, even if that is true, what can we do? There are no answers for an immortal witch queen that can take whatever body she desires." Lavender said.

"We need to stop her plots. We have to oppose her somehow." Susan said.

"Harry Potter." Luna said in a dreamy voice.

"Maybe some faerie magic has corrupted Harry. He did not become a normal unicorn. He is a black unicorn. His next form was a nundu. The Queen could be turning him into a destructive weapon against Hogwarts." Parvati said.

Before Hermione could argue that Harry would not be corrupted, Daphne retorted. "That doesn't make sense. If the Queen already corrupted Potter, why would her servants hunt him still? And Potter has saved all of us, twice. Hermione, where do you think this Queen will strike next?"

"I don't know. But she is a malevolent force, and may be more dangerous than the Dark Lord." Hermione said.

Susan Bones sighed. "I am sorry Hermione, but this is too flimsy for my aunt and the DMLE to pursue. There is no evidence, just mysteries that we can't really explain. A poem and a play are not enough to assign a team of aurors."

"Let us assume Hermione, you are right - that poets and writers have seen true visions of the Queen of Air and Darkness. That means she destroyed Camelot over a thousand years ago, and outsmarted Merlin - who apparently is not the all knowing wizard that the magical world claims. She has incredibly powerful servants. She has a wealth of arcane knowledge. She is virtually immortal. What would someone like that want to do?" Daphne said.

"She wants to corrupt our world. The First World was a place of great beauty and terrible cruelty - where the powerful fey toyed with and tortured lesser beings. The Queen is the shadow at the heart of the faerie, and she will spread her darkness and corruption - not for power but just to amuse herself." Luna said.

"Thanks for this news on Christmas, Granger." Daphne took a swig of butterbeer.

"Would you rather I kept you in the dark?" Hermione asked snarkily.

"No, at least we can get ready. But this is going to be very bad. And I doubt anyone believes us until it is too late" Daphne said and then laughed.

"What is so funny?" Tracey asked.

"The Dark Lord and Dumbledore believe they are have all the answers. We will see what happens when they face someone more powerful." Daphne said grimly.

"In _The Once and Future King_, her plot takes decades. King Arthur rules for twenty years before Camelot is destroyed." Lavender said.

"Everything happens faster these days. I don't know but I doubt there is much time left. We have to prepare the best we can.' Hermione said. The witches ate and drank in silence before Dobby came back, to pop them back home. The seven girls wished each other a Merry Christmas but the mood was grim.

* * *

Harry Potter looked into the blue and green waters of the faerie pond with loathing. He turned his arm in several directions and different poses, hoping that the reflection would change. It did not. His right hand was now a claw with three talons. And the skin was not the spotted gold of the nundu but covered with scales and cold blooded. Even his teeth were changing, the four pointed canines elongating to the point that he almost bite his tongue off when he closed his mouth. He had hoped that the next form would be a larger cat, or perhaps a sabre toothed tiger, but the reptilian skin refuted that guess. Harry wondered if he was turning into a giant lizard like Curt Connors.

**Freak**. All his life, even when he was feted by Dumbledore and the school for surviving a deadly adventure, Harry had believed there was something wrong with him, something inside that was shameful. The Dursleys damaged his psyche by branding him a freak, and now the label was undeniable. Harry longed to be an average wizard, with good friends, a loving family and plans for the future with no more worries than passing the OWLs or getting a date for a dance. Instead, he was some hybrid magical creature with no idea what he would become - only that he would become more beast like over time. I am a freak, Harry thought sadly.

Harry had never fit in as a child. Much of that could be blamed on the Dursleys who only grudgingly gave him the bare necessities to survive. He had grown up without a speck of affection, banished to a cupboard under the stairs, with no memory of his parents except dreams of his mother's love. When he discovered Hogwarts, the world had become a brighter place. He was good at magic - not reading gigantic books or potting plants perhaps - but at practical defense and flying. The other students accepted and even admired him for those skills - and now, that was all gone. He couldn't fly and he couldn't cast. He was no longer a wizard.

Last night, Harry had drifted off to sleep in the tent, drained by the physical and mental regimen Morgana had imposed. In the dreams, he walked with friends and teachers to an enormous hall, far grander than Hogwarts, where witches, wizards and muggles were celebrating. He saw the shades of his parents - a tall thin man with a bright smile and unruly hair and a beautiful redheaded woman with bright green eyes. They laughed with their friends - a saner Sirius Black, a happier Remus Lupin, and even a less pigheaded Severus Snape. But when Harry tried to get in, the glass door refused to open. Hermione Granger walked through, as did Neville Longbottom and Ron Weasley and so many of his former classmates. Even Draco Malfoy could enter. Only Harry was locked outside, helpless and stuck as everyone passed, allowed only to watch as others enjoyed the festivities.

A dignified Dumbledore guarded the entrance. "Your friends and family are welcome here but you cannot enter. If you were too happy, they would suffer needlessly." The headmaster said gravely. "You must stay outside to protect us. You have the greatest task - to serve as the shield and the sword against the Dark Lord. Else the world will burn."

Perhaps everything should burn, Harry thought. Why did he have to sacrifice so much when others did so little? Not everyone of course - but besides a few students, no one had helped him. But Harry knew he would never make that choice. He might be tempted but he would never run away to an island in the sun, or a magical school in America, far away from the troubles in Britain. I can't even do wand magic anyway. Harry knew his story - even if he did not know why he chose this path. He would fight to save his friends, his school, Hermione no matter how much it hurt. He would protect them even if they never knew.

So Harry went back to his transformations. He accepted the beast. He changed into the unicorn, and then the nundu, and returned to just plain Harry, a fifteen year old boy on the brink of manhood. Harry was still in wallowing in his despair. Otherwise, he would have noticed the crystal waters of the faerie pool, bubbling and boiling as his magic and anger began to spread and resonate over the Forbidden Forest.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore waited in an office in the Defense Against Dark Arts tower for his spy to report. While Minerva had not commandeered his office out of respect, his loss of the title meant his control over the Headmaster portraits was debatable. He was certain that Phineas Nigellus Black would use the opportunity to create trouble or worse gossip with other members of the House of Black, and alert Sirius or Andromeda to his plans.

A hook nosed wizard with greasy black hair dressed in flowing black robes entered.

"What news, Severus?" Dumbledore asked a touch sharply. Recent setbacks had made Albus impatient.

"The Dark Lord is angry." Snape said.

"That is hardly a surprise. Even when he was young, Riddle hated not getting his own way. At the orphanage, he once killed a boy's rabbit when he didn't get his way." Dumbledore said.

Snape wondered why Dumbledore allowed the young Riddle to attend Hogwarts if he knew that disturbing story. "I am afraid it has gone far beyond killing pets. He has ordered the deaths of Bones, Tonks, and Black. I have never seen him so furious."

"Does he plan to come out of hiding and lead a Death Eater attack?" an alarmed Dumbledore asked.

"No but he is demanding results. Voldemort believed that he was on the cusp of victory, but with the battle in Hogsmeade, many families have abandoned him. Headmaster, I may need to deliver him someone in the Order for torture and execution. Otherwise, he will suspect me of being a traitor." Snape said.

"But surely he relies on you for potions. His body is an unstable construct, Severus. He needs your assistance to prevent magical decay." Dumbledore said.

"Perhaps but his moods have gotten worse. He killed a Death Eater for being frightened of the nundu. He is not mentally stable anymore." Snape said.

Albus sighed - another pure blood wizard killed in the war. The headmaster mourned the loss of any magical life, even misguided enemies. "We do not have the resources to defend everyone. We are spread too thin, and there are few new auror recruits for the Order of the Phoenix, now that Amelia Bones has become more active."

"Perhaps, we could sacrifice a few pawns. Hestia Jones or Emmeline Vance are unimportant. Even Sirius Black - now that he is no longer hiding at 12 Grimmauld Place, a Death Eater attack on a Blood Traitor in the Black family would be expected." Snape said.

"No, Severus. Sirius is far too valuable. The Order is using 12 Grimmauld as a base and he is the Secret Keeper. I may need to move the Weasleys there for protection." Dumbledore said. Snape's face curled in disgust, his feelings for the loud bunch of redheads quite obvious. "Black also serves as a conduit to Harry Potter, and we need to know if the boy communicates with his godfather."

"We should focus the Dark Lord's attention on Potter directly. That would be easier than baby-sitting Sirius Black. He knows of the prophecy - and now that Harry Potter has opposed him in Hogsmeade, the Dark Lord will thirst for revenge." Snape said.

"And how do you propose we do that? Harry Potter is in the Forbidden Forest. We cannot even get into the heart of the Forest. The centaurs refuse to let Hagrid in. They have retreated deeper into isolation, and even Firenze says the stars are not right for them to help." Dumbledore said.

"Headmaster, you know as well as I that Harry Potter's actions are easy to predict. The boy has a hero complex. An attack on his friends will cause him to come running. The Dark Lord is well aware of that." Snape said.

Dumbledore nodded. He did not enjoy the thought of more lives at risk, particularly young ones. Unfortunately, sacrifices had to be made to stop Voldemort. "Please try your best to keep the casualties low." Albus said.

"Headmaster, you greatly overestimate my influence. If you really want minimal violence, then Potter should face him soon. After all, the prophecy says that Potter has the power to vanquish the Dark Lord. Or do you not believe that anymore?" Snape said, examining Dumbledore's face carefully for any hints.

"Harry is the one mentioned in Sybill Trelawney's prophecy. But he may not be ready. I had hoped for more time before the confrontation. He does not know enough about Tom Riddle, the events of the first war, or how to use his powers." Dumbledore said.

Snape snorted. "Two months ago, Harry Potter had no magical power at all. And, the Dark Lord is not a patient person. He returned six months ago. Did you really expect him to wait years for his revenge?"

Dumbledore took the admonishment in stride and then bade Snape good night. The Potions Master did not celebrate Christmas, but he hoped the two weeks off would do Severus some good. The strains of spying on Tom Riddle were obvious despite Snape's vaunted Occlumency.

* * *

Dumbledore walked back to the main Tower, deep in thought. Severus was right - he had hoped for more time to marshall the Order of the Phoenix and prepare Harry for his inevitable sacrifice. The strange events of the last two months - the potion, Halloween, and the Hogsmeade attack had accelerated the time table. Dumbledore had expected it would take a year before Riddle fully penetrated the Ministry. Instead, Malfoy and his cronies managed to subvert the government with remarkable speed. The seeming loss of magic for Harry Potter had been an enormous blow to the morale of the Light. Now the boy had returned but Dumbledore feared it was too late.

Harry had turned away from Dumbledore's guidance, rejecting his overture at the Hog's Head Inn. What if the boy turned dark? Harry had been brutal, almost cruel, in his attacks on the Death Eaters at Hogsmeade. Could the horcrux in the scar corrupted his magic? Dumbledore did not think that Voldemort was influencing Harry through the link but soul magic was not predictable. Dumbledore thought the link would provide information on Voldemort's plans but with Potter gone and out of his control, that plan had resulted in nothing useful.

The boy was not strong enough to defeat Voldemort. He was too young, too unskilled to battle a wizard as powerful as Voldemort. The horcruxes were still out there, and the boy had to die before the Dark Lord could truly be defeated. Dumbledore had hoped to engineer a path where Harry would willingly sacrifice himself for the Greater Good to save his friends but an awkward teenage boy was more susceptible to the duties of love than an angry nundu.

Dumbledore wondered how to retrieve his wayward disciple. He would have made Harry a hero, a champion, the Great Hope of the light. If the boy survived through some miracle, the magical world would shower accolades on Harry and himself of course, as the boy's wise guardian. And if he died, his death would inspire the world. Instead, everything had gone to waste.

Harry Potter meant well but this rebellious path would only end in failure. The Dark Lord would triumph without Dumbledore's careful plots and plans. Dumbledore's mastery of Occlumency exceeded even Severus Snape. He still appeared the absolute exemplar of the forgetful avuncular grandfather even as he brooded over these latest troubles.

In his ruminations, Dumbledore did not perceive the subtle changes being made to the wards at Hogwarts. There had been times when the Headmaster allowed interlopers in the castle to play a role in convoluted plans - a troll, a basilisk, and even dementors. This was not one of them. The Queen of Air and Darkness had come to the castle, and she weaved her foul and powerful magicks in the air and the earth. Dumbledore was the greatest wizard of his age, and as skilled in ward creation as any human alive. However he was too absorbed to pay attention to anything besides Voldemort. And so, the Queen created the door to Androlynne.


End file.
